Mass Effect: Lair of the Shadow Broker
by MelasZepheos
Summary: 'I'm waiting.' Liara's two word message to Commander Shepard. It will open up more old wounds than Shepard could ever realise.
1. Chapter 1: I'm Waiting

**AN:-** Okay so I know I _said_ I was going to take a break...

**Chapter One: I'm Waiting**

"That can't have been easy."

"You were watching the feed?"

"Of course."

Shepard eased herself down into the co-pilot seat. "Then yeah. You know."

"Why… er." Joker cleared his throat and opened up the navigation menu. "Why'd you leave it there?"

"Found Pressly's log. He talked about the crew of course. How he changed his mind. How he went from suspicion to trust." She shrugged. "Just felt right."

"So where to next?"

"Well Liara's waiting for me on Ilium."

"Ah. Finally time to sort that mess out?"

Shepard nodded. "All this time I thought she didn't care, turns out Cerberus was just holding my mail for me."

"Shit. That's just sad."

She frowned at him and he mimed reading a letter. "I can just see TIM reading all your letters. 'Hmm, looks like she's waiting on delivery of an X-Station 5 within five to ten working days. Put that in the file!'" He actually did a pretty good impression.

"Oh come on Joker you know better than that." She got out of her chair and winked at him. "The X-Station 6 was released a month ago."

"Ha. See you Commander."

She wandered back through the hall, unzipping the heavy atmo-suit she had been wearing. There had been no need to wear armour to the planet, and since her armour was still mostly in a state of 'bent beyond all possible use or repair' she relished the opportunity to do a good old fashioned I&amp;E for once. Investigate and Explore had been one of her favourite courses in Officer Training, though mostly because it showed her where the best make-out spots were.

_Not much chance of that on Alchera._ She nodded to Garrus, who was manning the Yeoman station while Miranda took some downtime. He was still using a cane to get around; although she had a feeling it was now more an affectation than a necessity.

She was considering getting him a top hat.

She headed down to the crew quarters next, knowing that Miranda would still be awake. Despite the fact she had no reports to write anymore she still seemed to find something to keep her up. Shepard wondered whether it had anything to do with her genetic upgrades. Her own cybernetic upgrades meant she never needed more than four hours, although it was only recently she'd started getting even that.

She knocked on the door and sure enough it cycled open to reveal Miranda sitting at the chair by the window, a knife in one hand and her Cerberus jumpsuit in the other.

"Something I can help you with?" She asked as Shepard came in.

"Just doing my usual check-up." She gestured to the jumpsuit. "Something I can help you with?"

Miranda turned the suit over to reveal the Cerberus logo, half cut away from the fabric. "A little cosmetic work."

Shepard sat in the chair opposite. "And a knife was the best way to do that?"

"Well I used the solvent unsealer for the first one but it didn't have the same feel to it." She gestured to the bed where another three jumpsuits had been idly tossed, their badges removed somewhat raggedly by the knife. "I can sort out the edges later."

"You can sew?"

"So many things you still don't know about me Commander." Miranda gave her a raised eyebrow. "I told you my education was thorough."

"I have no doubt." Shepard grinned and stood again. "I'll leave you to it. Never did get the hang of sewing myself."

"From the way you handle a blade that does not surprise me."

That caught her off guard yet again. "You know how to sword fight?"

"Thorough Shepard." She looked up from her work with a half-smile quirking her lips. "Very thorough."

Her next stop was Jack, still stuck in the med bay while Mordin and Chakwas worked to get hold of the prosthetics that would enable her to walk again. Since she was practically spitting fire from spending so long cooped up and unable to walk Shepard had made it a priority. Part of the reason for stopping on Ilium was to get in contact with some of the asari genetechs. There was also a branch of Seraphtech on Ilium that Chakwas had been speaking to about a spinal impant.

"How's it going today Jack?"

"Same as it was yesterday Shepard, and the day before, and every damn day since I got myself shot by a fucking asshole."

"Chakwas tells me you should have recovered some sensitivity by now."

"Oh yeah. I keep getting itches and cramps and I can't move my legs to get rid of them. It's just great being able to feel the useless things, that helps sooooo much."

"At least you're doing better than yesterday." Shepard gave a pointed look to the dark grey smudge on the wall next to her where she had thrown a table against it the day before.

"Yeah yesterday was pretty bad."

"You wanna talk yet?"

Jack shrugged. "Not much to talk about. Samara died, then Thane. And I still see it when I go to sleep." She laid her head back on her pillows. "Do you know how many people I've killed Shepard?"

"I'm going to guess hundreds?"

"Probably. I don't even know the exact number. I can remember all of them, if I want to. But I've never seen them in my dreams."

"There's a difference between killing someone and someone choosing to die for you."

"He said he wasn't dying for me."

"Let me guess. He said something about already being dead and how he was just a tool or an instrument or something?"

Jack's smile was faint. "He said his soul was already saved. I had to do the same for mine."

"Yeah that sounds like Thane."

"Problem is I don't know how."

"Honestly I can't help you with that Jack." She rested a hand lightly on Jack's arm. "But give it time. Keep looking."

"Thanks Commander."

"No problem."

Heading back out into the mess hall brought her face to mask with Tali, who was digging some food out of the cupboards. She looked as Shepard approached. "Good to see you Commander."

"And you Tali." She leaned over the countertop to watch as Tali sorted out her meal. "You looking forward to getting back to the Migrant Fleet?"

"What do you mean?"

"Oh." Shepard frowned. "Sorry, I just thought. I didn't know if you'd want to stay with us."

"I am still welcome to?"

"Of course." Shepard quickly skirted round the counter and sat next to her. "I'd be a pretty stupid captain to give up the best engineer around."

"Well, captain. I think I gave you my answer a while ago. Tali'Zorah vas Normandy remember?"

Shepard grinned and butted their heads together. "I remember."

They stood and Tali headed to the table. "So are we going to see Liara again?"

"That's the plan."

"Could I come with you? I haven't seen her since I left for the Migrant Fleet."

"Of course Tali. Just… be prepared alright? She's not quite the same as she used to be."

/|\

_That was an understatement,_ Shepard couldn't help but think two days later as they stood in front of Liara's desk at parade rest, arms behind their backs and feet apart. She had brought Garrus as well, hoping that maybe the familiarity of her old companions would put Liara at ease. But she still maintained the aloof and business-like air she had had during their last meeting.

She tried not to let it worry her. Liara's letter to her had been a lot more candid about her feelings. It was still difficult to adjust to the idea of a life so hemmed in by surveillance from every side, but Shepard at least understood now a little better than last time. The realisation of just how much TIM had been keeping from her had been a wake-up call.

"I suppose congratulations are in order," Liara said. "The Collector base has been destroyed and the human colonies are safe. What can I do for you today?"

"I have some information I was hoping to pass on to you." Shepard brought out the hard-data disk Miranda had worked up for her, burning a lot of her remaining Cerberus bridges to get it. She hadn't seemed too torn up about it.

Liara masked her confusion well, but Shepard knew her well enough to see the slightest furrowing of her brow as she accepted the disk and loaded it into her omni-tool. "Let me see what you've got. It looks like a leaked transmission between Shadow Broker operatives." Understanding began to show on her face but it was quickly replaced by concern "It's about Feron, he's still alive."

She bolted from her chair, slipping the disk into a container and beginning to pack up her desk.

"Wait, who's Feron?"

"He was a friend. He helped me recover your body from the Shadow Broker."

"Why did the Shadow Broker want my corpse?" She knew most of what had happened after Cerberus got hold of her, but the intervening few months were slightly more difficult to account for.

"He was going to sell you to the Collectors, but Feron and I stopped him. Feron sacrificed himself to save me."

"So if you rescued me then how did I end up with Cerberus?"

"Well…" Liara paused in her packing and reflexively balled her fists. "They gave me intel to help recover you. They actually put Feron with me in the first place. After I got out, I gave you to them. They… said they could bring you back." She went back to packing, stuffing documents and disks into the case.

Shepard understood that worry. Liara had to have wondered for two years whether she had done the right thing, especially when she had showed up with a Cerberus logo in place. "You kept me out the Collector's hands. Without you I couldn't have come back. Thank you."

"You don't know what that means to me Shepard. I didn't know who you'd be if you came back. If you'd feel…" And the walls came down immediately. It wasn't just about surveillance; Shepard was convinced of that now. It was specifically to do with their relationship. "They brought you back and now they've giving me a chance to find Feron. After two years, I hadn't even dreamed…"

"Sounds like you and Feron were close." She heard the hurt in her own voice, and knew that Liara would as well. _Can't expect her to stay loyal Shep. You were dead and all._

Liara smiled. "It's funny. He betrayed me more than once. He was double dealing for Cerberus, for the Shadow Broker. But in the end he sacrificed himself for me. I owe him."

"Well any friend of yours is a friend of mine. What's our next step?"

"I…" She had finished packing, and now held the case close to her chest. "I don't know. I need to prepare, to think. I'm going home. Use my terminal if you need any local intel."

"You okay?"

The smile was gone, replaced by a hard look Shepard had never seen before. "I've spent two years plotting revenge, now I have the chance to make it a rescue."

"Let me help. I'll come by your apartment."

"Yes." Liara checked the time. "Give me a couple of hours. Hopefully I'll have a plan by then." She paused in the doorway. "Thank you Shepard." And she was gone.

"Well that went well."

"She didn't even say hello." Tali sounded like she was pouting.

Garrus shrugged. "I don't think she would be able to talk freely here, even if she wanted to."

"Let's not speculate on her motives until we have more to go on." Shepard ignored the terminal. "There's plenty of things we can do instead. I need to make some calls to prosthetic companies for Jack anyway."

One of the benefits of having quit Cerberus was that the Alliance had finally claimed responsibility for her again, even if they were insinuating quite hard that it had been on their orders that she destroyed the Collector base. She let them have their public relations fun. She had been used to score political points before and would probably be used that way again. Just as long as she didn't have to play the game herself she found little point worrying about it.

The upshot of all the news bulletins and media wrangling was that Seraphtech were more than happy to have all of their latest in spinal treatment technology sent over to the Normandy right away. Anything to help a hero who had helped stop colony attacks. Shepard turned down the offer for a company physician to go as well though. Jack was only just getting used to Chakwas and Mordin, bringing another doctor into the mix would never end well.

The time passed quickly enough for her, and Tali was delighted to find a quarian working for them as well, doing basic machinery repairs. Garrus was most interested in their ocular implants and shoulder-braces.

They headed for the cab rank. The driver was clearly unsure about taking a cab load of fully armed soldiers but a large sum of money changed his mind quickly enough. Night was beginning to fall over Ilium as they wove their way through the heavy traffic. The nightlife of the planet came highly recommended, but Shepard didn't envy the people trying to drive through it.

She knew something was wrong from the moment the cab pulled up. Several police cars were parked out front, and in one of the apartments she could see a dozen figures moving around waving omni-tools at everything.

She raced from the cab, taking the stairs three at a time until she got to Liara's door, where a bored looking asari held up a hand to keep her out.

"What's going on?" She asked.

"This area is sealed off. Please step back ma'am."

"Sealed off? Why?" She could see one police officer crouched down near the desk, but couldn't make out what he was examining.

"Someone tried to kill your friend Commander Shepard." She looked up to see another asari, older than the police officer and with dark face markings around her eyes and forehead. She wasn't wearing any sort of official uniform, but her armour looked expensive. "Thank you officer, your people are dismissed."

The cop was clearly shocked at the dismissal. "You can't do that."

"Already done."

Her tone and harsh stare would brook no argument. The cop stuck her jaw out, then signalled her men. They marched out past Shepard and her squad, muttering darkly about jurisdiction.

Once the last of them was gone the asari's glare turned to a smile. "Tela Vasir, Special Tactics and Recon."

Shepard returned the smile even as her danger senses went into high alert. "A Spectre."

"I heard your status was reinstated. Good. You're one of our most famous operatives. Might even get you to sign my chest plate." Shepard thought she might have been coming on to her, in which case she was badly mistaken. Interesting to see though. "So, I assume you had business with your friend this evening Commander?"

"We had arranged a meeting." She didn't want to give anything away. Whatever Liara was or wasn't into, if there was a Spectre sniffing around she was in danger. And something about Tela's arrival and casual greeting had put her on edge.

"I can imagine." Tela held up a data pad. "The Shadow Broker? That's a dangerous enemy to have."

"Liara was expecting me. She might have left a message here." _She definitely did, but if I can find it before you…_

"Her office wasn't safe?" Before Shepard could answer she pushed away from the desk and continued talking. "I'm not surprised. Ilium is just Omega with expensive shoes. I haven't found anything useful for tracking her down yet. You knew T'soni better than I do, where would she have hidden her backups?"

Shepard nodded to Garrus, and Tali, who moved out to search the apartment. Shepard took a moment to take it all in, her eyes lighting on a number of promising leads. On the wall to her right was an oil painting of Ilos. Across from the door Liara's doctorate, framed and mounted. By the entertainment system Shepard could see several OSDs and a box for Navy &amp; Garnet: Clan Gulley Archives. Clearly Liara had been halfway through a serious binge.

"I'm going to check upstairs," she said, thinking it was more likely Liara kept well hidden things closer to her living quarters. She climbed the stairs with Tela right behind her.

The bedroom was covered in hard copy paper and datapads. Shepard knelt to examine some of the paper, wondering why Liara had chosen it. As she turned it over in her hands to reveal handwritten navigation data she realised it had been for security purposes. It was a lot harder to hack a sheaf of carbon.

Liara's bed was unmade and a complete mess, more datapads, one of which looked like it had been cracked from someone lying on it, possibly while she slept. Shepard smiled at the image of Liara curled up, surrounded by her data pads.

"Any of this could give us a hint."

"No. Liara wouldn't leave it out, whatever it was."

She opened up the bedside drawers, searching for something she recognised. The bottom drawer only held nightclothes, neatly folded. The top drawer had trinkets, including a soft plush figure of a human Shepard had once bought Liara as a gift. She had a matching asari plush figure held in a storage unit at Arcturus. Under the toy was a small silver metal tube about the length of Shepard's finger. She went to examine it and almost immediately recognised what it was.

She hurriedly replaced the plush and shut the drawer.

"Found anything?"

"Nope. Nuh uh." She took a breath. "Just some personal effects."

"And you're sure she would have left something?"

Shepard looked to the top of the bedside unit, where a picture of the old Normandy had been set. She reached for it, smiling. "Yeah, I'm sure." She touched the frame and the picture changed inside it, showing an image of Prothean ruins.

Tela Vasir saw the change. "It must be keyed to your id. Clever. What does it show now?"

"It's a Prothean dig site. Liara dig leave a message."

"There are a few Prothean looking objects around the apartment. Let's see what we can find."

There were half a dozen Prothean looking objects in Liara's bedroom alone, all hidden behind glass display cases. _This must have taken her a fortune to collect._ She examined one piece, recognising the shapes and patterns Liara had used to enthuse about. She certainly hoped finding the information didn't rely on her recognising a specific piece of Prothean artwork, she had never been able to get quite so enthusiastic about it as Liara had.

None of the pieces upstairs seemed to reveal anything, and nothing buzzed or hummed or clicked when she got near them. She went downstairs, wondering if she would have to perform some sort of action in front of the cases. Liara had always teased her about her dancing.

She approached on of the display cases, opposite painting of Ilos, and heard a faint whirring sound. She stepped closer and it intensified, then a moment later a small tray popped out, bearing a flat, grey circular device with a red light blinking on and off.

"You found something?" Vasir swooped it up before Shepard could say anything. "Backup disk, let's try it on her terminal." She took it over to the desk and loaded it into the computer without another word. Garrus and Tali came over to join them, Garrus shooting Shepard a meaningful look.

She signalled _wait._ Whatever Vasir's game was, she wasn't likely to stand up against all three of them, four if Liara was around.

"It looks like she recorded a call."

Vasir stepped back from the terminal as on the monitor above them a salarian's image manifested.

"What have you got me Sekat?" Definitely Liara's voice. It didn't sound like she was using any sort of program to hide her voice.

"It was tricky but you paid for the best. I can narrow it down to a cluster, maybe even a system." She must have been working on the data Shepard had given her. She knew it had included some navigational data.

"How soon can you have it?"

"Shouldn't take long, come to my office. Baria Frontiers in the Dracon Trade Centre. Gotta say though T'soni, you're making me a little nervous. How big is the trouble that could come out of this?"

"Relax Sekat, I'll see you in a few hours."

"This data must be important." Garrus was playing along with Shepard, pretending they had no knowledge of Liara's antics. "The Shadow Broker's people already tried to kill her once."

"I know where the Dracon Trade Centre is. My car's outside."

Shepard put on her best 'meet the public' smile. "Let's go."

**AN:-** Bit more humour in this one. I like using the DLC stuff to take a break from the whole 'galaxy ending quest' storyline.

The X-Station is obviously a console, and obviously takes its name from the XBox and the PlayStation.

There's a couple of meme images of Garrus in a top hat and monocle, also Wrex. I thought it would be fun to throw in a reference to them. Obviously his knee got busted during the Collector attack so he's using a cane while he heals. It just seemed to really fit his personality.

A thing that will become apparent is that injuries are going to start lasting. People are going to have significant losses in Mass Effect 3, limbs, crippling. They may still get replacements or prosthetics but no one's coming through without scars. This is obviously starting with Jack. Seraphtech is on the Mass Effect fanfiction wiki as a manufacturer of synthetic limb replacements.

I don't like that Shepard immediately trusts Tela Vasir. From the first second she arrived I was practically screaming 'trap!' Shepard's not an idiot. Even if she doesn't suspect Tela of working for the Shadow Broker then a Spectre looking into Liara's life is suspicious, and has to be about more than just an attempt on her life.

And of course a slightly rude joke/insert from me. When I finally write Liara and Shepard's reunion it's gonna be interesting.


	2. Chapter 2: Dracon Trade Centre

**AN:-** Can you tell when I don't have a good idea for a chapter title?

**Chapter Two: Dracon Trade Centre**

The car cut through the night sky, blazing a siren every so often to clear the more stubborn commuters. Tela didn't seem to care much for the rules of the road. _Or, y'know, sky._ Shepard watched as a truck somehow managed to screech to a halt in mid-air. She imagined the driver cursing them out inside the cab.

Ahead of them the Dracon Trade Centre appeared. Exactly the same glass building as everything that surrounded it. There was a small plaza out front with a few benches and hedges, but nothing she hadn't seen before on Ilium. Tela brought her car in low, fitting it neatly in between two parked cars.

As they climbed out Tela gave them the rundown. "The Baria Frontiers offices are located on the third floor." She looked up at the third floor. "I don't hear police chatter, we must have missed the party."

Shepard followed her, Garrus and Tali falling into place. They marched across the concourse towards the doors, avoiding the civilians still milling around despite the lateness of the hour. Tela was just checking her pistol when an explosion knocked them to the ground. Glass rained down around them and screams split the air. Shepard looked up in panic to see fire curling out of the third floor window.

She scrabbled to her feet. "Liara's in there!" Someone grabbed her arm and she looked back to see Garrus struggling to hold her back. "Garrus!"

"Stop and think." He used her as a ladder to get to his feet, favouring his left leg again. "You can't just rush into a bomb site without a plan."

He was right. She forced herself to calm down, gritting her teeth and clenching her fists hard enough that her palms hurt even with the gloves on. She allowed her eyes to track over the carnage before them, the bodies scattered on the floor, burned or bleeding from multiple wounds. Several of the civilians were on their feet, drifting aimlessly amongst the ruins.

"Keelah."

Shepard looked back to see Tali, who was staring at the crowd before her. Shepard turned to her and rested a hand lightly on her forearm. "Hey, Tali. Look at me. It'll be okay." She didn't know what the girl's experience with scenes like this might have been, but she suspected it wasn't extensive. "Sweep the building, try and find any explosive residue or shrapnel from the bomb casing."

Tali was shocked for only a moment longer, but she brought up her omni-tool and started to sweep it left and right, focusing on the upper levels of the building. Shepard hurried over to a woman who was kneeling by a body.

"Hey, my name's Shepard, are you alright?"

The woman didn't answer, tears streaming down her face as she stared at the body. It was badly burned, wearing a professional looking suit. Shepard pulled the woman gently away. "You don't want to see that. What's your name?"

The woman came back to herself a little. "I'm Angela, Angie."

"Okay Angie, come with me okay?" Shepard led her gently back towards the car pool, where Tela was finally back on her feet. Shepard guided the woman onto a bench and rubbed her back gently. "We need someone to take care of her. Garrus find anyone with medical knowledge. We have to help these people."

"Shepard we don't have time for that." Tela had staggered over. "They just took out three floors to make sure she's dead." She went back to the car. "I'll grab the sky car and seal off the building from the top."

Shepard bit back an angry retort as Garrus came over, leading a man who looked uninjured. "Found you a paramedic."

"You'll do." She stood and grabbed the man by the shoulder, jarring him out of his shock. "You have training?"

"Yeah, but not for something like this I do small scale calls."

"Well suck it up because these people need you. Treat people for shock, any minor cuts and bruises you think you can handle, do that too. Get people not too shaken up to help you find any other victims."

"Shepard-"

She cut Vasir off with a glare. "I'll leave one of my team's medical bags here. It's rated for military level, so there'll be some stuff you might not know how to use. Do your best and the emergency crews should be here shortly."

He was looking better now, straightening as determination replaced fear. "Understood." He accepted the medical kit and drew a blanket from it, covering the woman on the bench and rubbing her shoulders, speaking softly to her.

Shepard rounded on Vasir. "Right. Take the car, sweep the top down. We'll start down here and work my way up."

"Understood." Vasir stepped into the car. "Just leave some for me."

"Right." Shepard turned back to find Tali and Garrus waiting for her. "I'll lead this time. Tali you stay on my nine, Garrus you bring up the rear."

"Understood Shepard."

"Help civilians where we can, but the primary focus of the mission is still Liara and her contact. If they're alive in there we'll find them. If they're not we'll get their data and figure out what to do from there."

"Do you think Liara survived the blast?"

"I don't think Liara would be dumb enough to even get caught in it." She drew her SMG. "Move out!"

Shepard led the way into burned out offices, SMG before her as she checked corners. There didn't seem to be much structural damage on the ground floor, but there had definitely been damage. A couple more bodies lay inside, though it looked like they had been killed by masonry hitting them instead of fire.

Garrus knelt down beside one of the bodies, wincing at the pain in his knee. "He's a Baria Frontier employee. Looks like he got caught by that falling block of debris." He pointed to a nearby hunk of concrete that had a dark red stain on it.

"I wouldn't take any bets on T'soni's informant surviving the blast," Tali said.

"Let's not speculate before we have all the evidence."

Garrus got back to his feet. "The elevator will have shut down after the blast. We should take the stairs."

"You're finally speaking my language." Shepard headed for the stairs, Tali falling into place beside her. "Even with your knee it'll probably be faster."

Shepard went first up the stairs, feeling the pain starting to spread across her own hip. It had only been a month since she got shot clean through the pelvis. Chakwas had warned her about recurrent pain, even with her implants. In fact the implants made it even more dangerous, since they would automatically trigger extra endorphins into her system. She stopped at the top and waited until Garrus had come to join them. He was limping, but not badly.

The door had been blasted outwards by the force of the explosion, but it still creaked open. Shepard was able to slip through the gap and out into a scene of total destruction. It was a farily standard two tier office complex, lounge areas on the lower floor with offices on top. The floor had been knocked through in several places from the bombs. Shepard looked up at the ceiling.

"Your professional opinion?" She asked Garrus.

"More than one detonation. This wasn't a single big bomb."

"That's what I was afraid of?"

Tali was looking up as well. "Why?"

"If they've already set several bombs, how do we know all of them went?"

"That's comforting."

"Did you get anything from your earlier scan?"

Tali checked her omni-tool. "Some fragments which didn't correspond to the structure of the building, a few chemical compounds."

"Try running a scan based on those components. Maybe we can double check for the devices."

A couple of seconds later and Tali's omni-tool binged. She pointed them over to the stairs. Garrus gently tipped over a trash can and nodded, replacing the can. "Yep."

"Can you identify anything about it?"

"Not without a proper examination. It's definitely military though. I'd rather not move the can if you don't mind."

Tali was confused again. "Why?"

"It could be equipped with some sort of motion sensor, or light detection unit. We move the can without a proper bomb squad and it goes off." Shepard sighed and rubbed the bridge of her nose, a gesture she found herself repeating a lot recently. "Mark the location. Tali, note any other devices you can find with that particular signature. We'll send the data to the police and paramedics so they don't blow them."

"We really should warn the Spectre."

"Of course Garrus. Unless of course she set the damn things."

"We're really thinking that?"

"I'm thinking that it's pretty convenient that the bomb goes off the moment we arrive, giving Tela an excuse to split away from us and…" She closed her eyes. "Oh dear."

"Shepard?"

"She just split away from us. If Liara's informant is still alive, or if Liara is alive but wounded, and Tela gets to her first…" She rushed up the stairs. "We can't let that happen."

They reached the next set of stairs, Shepard hammering the button to open the door.

"Got another casualty here."

"Garrus there's casualties everywhere."

"Yeah but this guy has bullet wounds."

"Bullet wounds?" Tali shook her head as the door opened. "Guess this was more than just an explosion."

Shepard pounded up the stairs at double time. "There have to be agents inside."

"Agents?"

"You think the Shadow Broker doesn't have agents?"

They came to a halt at the top door, and even as she pressed the button Shepard could feel the heat emanating from the metal. They raced through the door and found the reception desk for the Baria Frontiers office.

"Tali, get me something."

Tali bent over the ruined computer for a moment, fiddling with the internal hardware. A moment later she straightened. "Liara signed in a few minutes ago."

Shepard took a breath to steady her nerves. If Liara had been in the office during the blast it didn't look hopeful. "Understood."

The door to Baria Frontiers was locked, but Tali was able to hack through it in seconds. They piled into the office, which was in flames. The desks had been blasted away from the walls, which had themselves been blown through in several places. The floor was covered in glass shards and every window had been shattered. Worst of all were the bodies. A dozen at least, all showing severe signs of dismemberment or burning.

"Oh."

Shepard automatically reached out to grip Tali's forearm. "I'm sorry. We'll be through in a moment."

"It's just." She shook her head. "It's night time. Why were there still people here?"

"That's the nature of the business machine," Garrus said, not unkindly. "Anywhere, anytime, someone might need a star chart or need to deposit one. There always have to be people here."

Shepard led the way through the blasted out office, past what had once been orderly rows of desks and computer terminals. She ignored the bodies now, there was nothing she could do for them. There were no signs of anything other than a big explosion, but she knew there had to be at least one operative.

_Besides Vasir. Unless you're just being massively paranoid._ She pushed that aside. She read people, she knew she did, and she did it well. Something about Vasir wasn't adding up. Either she had been investigating Liara before or she had been assigned to do it because of the Shadow Broker connection. Neither of those outcomes was particularly encouraging to her.

She rounded a corner and heard a dull thud from nearby. Looking down revealed a small cylinder right at her feet. Her nose twitched as the memory implant did its work, telling her it was a XM230 flash bang. Unfortunately the implant didn't have any suggestions on avoiding getting blasted when it exploded in her face.

It was a strange sensation, and not one she particularly enjoyed. She had been hit with flashbangs before of course. It was an integral part of N-spec training, and any marine had been on the wrong side of them at one time or another. But that had been before Cerberus had updated her. Last time she had been hit her vision had been whited out, the noise had deafened her for hours afterwards, and she had been violently sick immediately after the combat ended.

This time her ears were apparently reinforced against the sudden change in decibel level. But it changed the deafness to a weird muffled tone, like her head had been plunged underwater. Her vision darkened, and she had the sudden disconcerting feeling that someone had stuck sunglasses over her eyes.

She ducked back into cover and shook her head, trying to clear the after-effects. But they wouldn't shift. She growled and leaned out, spotting flashes of gunfire from further in. She sprayed SMG fire down the corridor, hearing the crack of Garrus' assault rifle from somewhere nearby, though she couldn't quite figure out the exact location.

"Sit-rep," she shouted.

"Mercenaries." She couldn't even tell who had said it. It wasn't that helpful anyway.

She leaned out again and got one of the blurry shapes down the end of her sights, squeezing off another burst of fire. She thought the figure dropped, but she couldn't be sure. Taking a moment to curse out Miranda and Cerberus and anyone else in the general vicinity she reloaded.

"Clear."

She stood, still shaking her head to try and clear the last of the dimming effects. Her vision returned in stages, first the colours came back, then the light slowly increased until she was back to normal vision. At the same time her vision slowly brought back the basses and trebles in people's voices until she could recognise the difference between Garrus and Tali.

Tali was reloading. "Who are these guys?"

"If I had to guess, I would say the Shadow Broker's people."

Shepard looked down the corridor to the bodies. "How many were in that team?"

Garrus flared his mandibles in surprise. "You didn't see?"

"Apparently Cerberus has installed new anti-flashbang tech in my head. Only trouble is I couldn't see or hear a damn thing." Given the circumstances she thought she did a good job keeping most of the biting sarcasm out of her voice.

"Sorry." He pulled himself to some sort of attention. "Four mercenaries. Well-armed and well trained. They know the correct tactics for fighting inside a building. No distinguishing marks or identifying symbols on their armour."

"Well that pretty much definitively nets them as the Shadow Broker's agents." Shepard started forwards again, past the bodies and to the very end of the office.

Tali set up against the wall, checking the corner. "How do you figure?"

"Everyone in this galaxy, the Alliance, Cerberus, every race and every insignificant banker on a border world has an insignia of some kind Tali." Shepard followed her as she took point, Garrus limping along behind. "Stands to reason that the only person in the world who wouldn't brand his soldiers would be the Shadow Broker."

Around the corner they finally encountered a working sprinkler system, water pouring down heavy around them. The entire wall had been blown out by the force of the explosion, and the wind whipped around them, threatening to tug them out.

"More stairs ahead," Tali said.

"That should bring us up to the third floor." Shepard switched to her pistol. "Alright let's move it up people, Liara could be in danger up there."

They raced up the stairs to find yet another locked door, with a halfway decent lock. Of course Tali had more than enough experience breaking the unbreakable. Shepard went back to check with Garrus, who was limping worse than before, when there was a gunshot from inside the door. Tali's head jerked up and she activated a program which made the lock glow briefly deep crimson before it disappeared entirely, the door springing open to reveal a dead woman in the same white armour as before, a neat bullet wound near the top of her spine. Against the wall a dead salarian was slumped, two bullet wounds in his chest.

"Damn it." Shepard snapped her pistol up to cover Vasir, who was clouched against the opposite wall, her tone one of complete disinterest. "If I'd have been a few seconds faster I could have stopped them."

Shepard dropped her pistol, deciding to play along for a moment. "Is this Sekat?" As if she couldn't remember perfectly what the salarian on the recording they had watched had looked like.

"Must have been."

"No sign of that data Liara talked about. Looks like a dead end."

"Speaking of which, did you find your friend's body?"

So casual, and yet so obviously what she really wanted to talk about. Shepard's grip tightened on the pistol and she shot a look to the right to see Garrus still half in the cover of the doorway, ready to draw down on a second's notice. Now was definitely the moment of decision. If she drew down on another Spectre it would definitely mean a fight, and a tough one. And if it turned out she was wrong, and just paranoid, then she would be branded rogue.

The tension in the room heightened as both sides knew what was coming next. Shepard still had her back to Vasir, but her shields were up and her armour had stopped worse than the pistol Vasir carried. Garrus and Tali were backing her which gave her the advantage of firepower but Vasir had to have biotics. Shepard had seen people do some impossible things biotically, and she didn't want to test the level a Spectre might be at.

"You mean this body?"

**AN:- **I stripped a lot of the gunfights out of this one. A lot of the DLC is artificially padded out with gunfights. Fine for a game, not suitable for a novel. I also rewrote a bit of dialogue to fit the 'Shepard is a paranoid nutbar' thing. For the record on that front although she is right this time, her paranoia is going to become an issue. Not that you can exactly blame her.

I added quite a bit to the post-blast scene. One of my criticisms with movies like Man of Steel or the Dark Knight movies is that no one cares about collateral damage to civilians. By contrast in the Marvel movies the heroes deliberately try to lead danger away from civilians and save them if they're in danger. My Shepard is a full-blown paragon who hates losing people and she lost three members of her team less than a month ago. Of course she's going to be a bit concerned about saving people. I did a bit of research into reactions post attack. Most of the evidence suggests that people with experience, paramedics, soldiers etc, are the first ones to overcome shock, but then they can usually organise other people. When people are in shock and scared they tend to follow anyone who seems to know what they're doing.

I also gave Tali a more visceral reaction. There's a big difference in seeing the death of other soldiers when you yourself are a soldier (particularly when the enemy you fight are robots) and seeing the result of civilian casualties after a terrorist attack. Tali has experienced the first, not so much of the second. I did do a slight bit of my usual guesswork about paramedics. I would assume that in the future accidents and medical emergencies become more distinct when you add things like spaceflight accidents and eezo. So paramedics and medics would split into home-call style paramedics and big accident style paramedics. At least in my opinion.

Couldn't resist another jab at the slow elevators. Kinda had a problem with the flash bangs as well since I've already mentioned ear plugs which change depending on the decibel level. So presumably the flash bangs are being constructed to get through on a different frequency or something, using speakers and digital sounds instead of just straight loud noise to cause confusion.

I know the Shadow Broker has an insignia on his agents. But I don't like it. Doesn't make sense for such a shadowy organisation to have a symbol of any sort. Otherwise people would know it was a Shadow Broker job and would start building case files.


	3. Chapter 3: Kind of a Badass

**AN:-** Y'know the DLC was supposed to be a relaxing thing for me. This DLC is huge!

**Chapter Three: Kind of a Badass**

The voice to lift a thousand spirits. Shepard spun, pistol up and trained on Vasir as Liara emerged from a door to the side of the room, covering Vasir and forcing her to choose a target. From his doorway Garrus brought his sniper rifle up and sighted on her, Tali doing the same with her shotgun. Vasir was completely pinned.

"This is the woman who tried to kill me."

"You've had a rough day, so I'll let that slide. Why don't we put the guns down?" Vasir still talked like she was in charge. That was enough to make Shepard more than nervous.

"I saw you. I doubled back after you left. I watched you break into my apartment." Shepard spared a look to Shepard. "Once she had my location she signalled the Shadow Broker's forces. They bombed the building to take me out. She found Sekat, took his data, and killed him. I'm guessing she's still got the disk on her."

Vasir held up a data disk, a smug grin spreading across her face. "Good guess. Not that you'll ever see what's on it." The glass behind her shattered, Shepard realising a moment too late that her other arm was behind her back and glowing with biotic power. The shards of the window hovered in midair as the biotic fire spread across Tela's entire body. "You pure-blood bitch!"

Vasir threw her arm forwards and the glass streamed past her, flying for them. On instinct Shepard raised her hand to shield her eyes, but none of the glass hit. She looked over to see Liara glowing as well, lighter than Tela. A shield was ahead of them, burning the glass to dust before it reached them.

As the barrier dropped Shepard raced forwards, staying low in case of any other attacks. Her shoulder impacted hard under Vasir's sternum and she stood, lifting her off the ground. The momentum of her charge carried them onto the sill of the window and she tried to pull back to get a strike in. Vasir recovered and pulled her back in, trying to grab her neck with a hand on fire with biotics. Shepard grabbed her wrist and twisted it until the wrist bones snapped in her grip.

Vasir yelled and bucked, pulling them further out along the window until the wind was tugging at Shepard's hair. Shepard heard Garrus yell her name but she was already past the tipping point. Her stomach lurched and she rolled the final fatal inch, Vasir managing to get on top of her as they plummeted straight down.

_Of course,_ she had time to think as they fell. _Now those implants kick in._

She watched the fall in slow motion, the emotions rushing across Vasir's face going from pain to victory to realisation and settling on fear. The building rushed past to her right and on the left she had a rapidly descending view of the Ilium skyline at night. Quite a beautiful image really. If it hadn't been followed by a slam into the solid ground.

Her back lit up with pain, her neck jarred from the impact and her head cracked against the deck. Stars spun in her vision and she rolled to one side, realising that Vasir was no longer on top of her. Her hearing came in and out, the wail of ambulance sirens, screaming and shouting from civilians nearby, and gunshots from above.

She looked up to see Liara leaning out of the window, pistol in hand. Bullets sparked on the ground near to her and she rolled to clear the line of fire. She spotted Vasir, making for the car pool again. Shepard found her SMG and fired too, keeping Vasir from getting into her vehicle. The asari switched direction on the fly, diving for cover behind a row of potted plants.

Shepard looked up and watched as Liara threw herself out of the window, blue light engulfing her, slowing her fall until she landed gracefully in a picture perfect three point landing. Her head snapped up to focus on Tela and she raised her hand to reveal she had cracked the floor when she landed. A biotic pulse ripped from her fingers and engulfed the bench Vasir was hiding behind.

A car came in right behind Vasir's position and Shadow Broker forces piled out of it, guns blazing. Shepard staggered for cover, hoping the civilians were smart enough to get down as well. Liara stayed out in the open, her biotic barrier up and her kinetic shields flaring as well.

Leaning out to shoot one of the agents Shepard watched Vasir ducking into the car, pulling away and into the night. Liara waved and a singularity appeared in the middle of the Shadow Broker's forces, pulling them into it and ripping them to pieces. It was much more controlled than Shepard had seen her do before, but also much more brutal. She double checked that no civilians had been dragged by the force of the singularity.

Boots thundered behind her as she got back to her feet and Garrus and Tali appeared at her side. "Liara's kind of badass now," Tali said, gasping a little from the run.

Shepard watched as Liara hauled a cab driver out of his vehicle and got behind the wheel. "She was always a badass. This is something new. I don't like it."

Liara gestured at her. "She's getting away!"

Shepard limped over, feeling the pain from her hip wound tugging. "I'm fine by the way, thanks for asking."

Garrus and Tali were barely in the back when Liara wrenched the controls to one side and spiralled into traffic.

"I'm driving."

"You're sure Shepard?"

"Shut up Garrus. I'm driving."

She knew she had snapped at him, but she didn't have time to feel bad about it. She was finding it harder to trust Liara's judgements, and she didn't particularly want to be in a car crash. Liara shifted the controls over to her side and Shepard pressed her foot to the floor. The cab leapt forwards, narrowly avoiding a truck. Shepard hauled back on the brake and wove her way past a couple of cars which didn't bother to turn. Probably on auto-drive.

"There she is!" Liara leaned forward, pointing out a car that was very obviously the one they needed to follow. "Go! Go go go go go!" She put her hand down right next to a red button on the dash.

"I'm going!" Shepard growled, shoving the accelerator forward again. "And don't push that button." Liara snatched her hand away from the button and held it to her chest. The cab punched forwards over the top of the traffic, the thrusters straining as they tried to keep the cab in the air.

As they righted on the other side of the traffic stream Tali leaned in between the front seats.

"What kind of guns does this thing have?"

Liara looked at her, rolling her eyes. "It's a taxi! It has a fare meter!"

Shepard gritted her teeth and stood the cab up on its side to avoid being sideswiped by a van. "Wonderful."

Vasir's car disappeared behind a building and Shepard stepped on it.

"Shepard not so fast."

"We're gonna lose her."

They came round the side of the building to find what was obviously an industrial fast track. Half a dozen trucks raced towards them, horns blaring.

Liara was practically climbing from her seat. "Truck!"

"I know." Shepard yanked hard on the collective and twisted the cyclic control hard to the right. The combined effort put them fully on their side and she heard Tali crash into Garrus on the back seat. They kept on right into the incoming traffic.

"TRUCK!"

"I know!"

She had pitched it perfectly. The automatic anti-collision field kicked in a moment before they hit the truck in the outside lane, shoving them away and towards the next truck in the line. The collision buffers activated again and they were bounced back and forth between the convoy of trucks. Shepard fought to keep the controls steady, keeping them between the line of trucks until they popped out the end and were abruptly righted.

Liara crashed back into her seat with a high pitched 'Yaaah!'

Shepard took off after Vasir again, grinning as she imagined the asari's look of slack-mouthed disbelief. "There we go!"

"You're enjoying this."

Shepard was worried her grin was getting slightly manic. But with Garrus and Tali in the back and Liara at her side it felt almost like old times again.

Vasir's car came closer and Shepard looked back to Garrus, who had opened up his assault rifle. "Ready when you are Shepard."

"Everyone hang onto something." Shepard turned to Liara. "You remember the button I told you not to push?"

Liara looked apprehensive. "Ye-es?"

"Push the button." Liara jabbed it and the cab whirred. "And you may wanna put on a seatbelt." The door opened to let in a burst of frigid air. Tali yelped while Liara grabbed hold of the seatbelt she still hadn't actually put on. Garrus jammed his foot into the footwell and leaned half out of the cab, gun hard against his shoulder.

The first shot was audible even above the roar of traffic and the howling wind. Liara yelped as it went off again, right by her ear. "You know, we're all much too tense." He fired again and Shepard saw the bullet spark off Vasir's car. "We need to relax, learn to take some joy in the work."

He fired again and Vasir veered into oncoming traffic. Shepard followed her without hesitation, Garrus spending a terrifying few seconds hanging almost entirely out of the cab before they righted again.

Liara was back to hanging onto the seatbelt. "A head-on collision at this speed..."

"Yeah, I hear those can be bad for you."

"Shepard there is oncoming traffic!"

"You only call me Shepard when you're mad." She narrowly avoided a flashy looking sportster. "We'll be fine."

Garrus fired again and a truck ahead of them turned unexpectedly, probably to avoid the gunfire. They slammed into the side and dragged alongside it, Garrus clinging to the back of Liara's headrest to stay in the car.

Liara slammed right into Shepard as they disengaged from the truck and got level again. As Garrus resumed firing Shepard turned to check on Liara. "You okay?"

"Still better than the Mako."

Ahead Vasir was beginning to change her tactics, weaving and dodging instead of trying to outpace them. Shepard didn't try and draw alongside her, certain she would have weapons of her own or even more explosive devices on board. She did her best to simply make sure Garrus always had the best possible angle and he didn't disappoint, scoring three hits on her engines and another two on the driver's side window.

The cab yawed wildly, fish-tailing and dropping in a long arc towards what looked like a hotel. Several patrons out on the upstairs patio ran for cover as Vasir's car slammed nose first into the surface. Shepard followed it down, but stayed hovering close above the balcony.

"This thing have a speaker? A megaphone?"

Liara was back to her old disgruntled self. "It's a taxi Shepard."

"Fine." She opened her own door. "I'll just yell real loud."

She leaned out and watched the car. "Vasir? You in there?"

The door to the cab blew out and she tumbled out, blood visible on her face and the torso plate of her armour. She lay by the car, not moving.

"She might be dead."

"A Spectre?" Garrus racked a new heat sink. "Not likely."

Shepard tried again. "Hey Vasir. How you doing?"

The asari turned and clearly replied, but she had no strength to shout. Shepard could see bright purple blood staining the white of her armour.

"Vasir I don't want to kill you. This doesn't have to get any worse."

She started to crawl towards the inside of the hotel. "Please stop. We will shoot you."

"Give me the data Vasir." Liara leaned out of her side as well. "I will kill you."

Vasir managed to get back to her feet while Shepard glared at Liara. She leaned back out. "Tela please."

She reached the doors to the hotel, hauling them open to reveal LOKI mechs marching towards her. Shepard shook her head and brought the cab in lower. There was no chance Vasir would get taken down by mechs. The cab hovered to one side of the balcony and Shepard manoeuvred them in close enough to dismount.

Pistol shots from ahead alerted them to Vasir taking down the mechs. Shepard looked over to see the mechs dropping to sparking piles of scrap. One of the asari dancers inside ran across the field of fire and was struck by a bullet. She dropped like a stone.

"Garrus. Drop her."

The rifle barked twice and Vasir stumbled forwards, two neat holes opening up on her back. Shepard slid the car over the final few feet and they were close enough to pile out. She set the automatic drive program and leapt out over the balcony as the taxi began its drive back to its standard rank.

Liara burst through the doors as Garrus and Tali were setting up. Shepard hurried after her, stepping over the ruins of the LOKI mechs. She knelt by the asari dancer, running the omni-tool over her body. The amount of blood told her the story, but it wasn't until the omni-tool confirmed no signs of life that she believed it. The bullet had gone through the base of the girl's neck, cutting her spinal cord entirely.

Liara came running back into the room. "She's losing blood fast. We should be able to track her easily enough."

"She's tough." Shepard sat back on her heels. "I'll give her that much. She should be down."

"We need to get going."

"Really Liara?" Shepard stood. "This woman was just killed. As a civilian casualty. Because of your investigation."

"We do not have time for this Commander. Vasir will escape if we do not follow her and I will lose the only lead I have had for two years." They were inches apart and all Shepard could think was how beautiful she looked when she was angry. "I am not going to throw away my only chance at revenge."

"And I am not going to be dragged into another damn vendetta. Vasir is mortally wounded, she's not going to escape this hotel. We follow the blood trail and we don't provoke her into blowing up another building."

"So you'd rather we stand here and argue over this body than go and stop her from shooting someone else?"

Shepard didn't have an answer for that and Liara saw that. She turned on her heel and marched from the room, leaving Shepard with Tali and Garrus.

"I see what you mean," Garrus said. "This is about more than just the Shadow Broker."

Shepard drew her pistol and checked the load. "I have a feeling it's about me Garrus. I don't think we have a solution for that."

"Let's get after her before she gets away from us." Tali was already halfway to the door, her shotgun in hand and her stance determined.

Shepard nodded and followed her. "This place won't have too many exits and Vasir's badly wounded. She's going down."

Inside the hotel they followed the blood down a wide open hallway, scattered with plants and couches. Blood covered one of the couches, as well as giving them a clear path to follow down the hall and around the corner. There was a smear on the wall there, but then no more blood.

Garrus examined the smear. "So she either healed herself or found some other way to stop the bleeding."

"And if she did that she'd think of new ways to lose us." Shepard looked down the hall. "If it was me I'd slip into one of the bedrooms, escape that way. Get checking."

They split up and started opening doors. The first door Shepard checked was locked, then a second revealed an asari in bed with a turian, engaged in rather passionate intercourse. Shepard closed the door softly, convinced they would have noticed a blood soaked commando bursting in on them. She backed out of the room and looked over to see Garrus beckoning her.

"Got something." He led the way into a bedroom. In the corner of the room Shepard saw a young human with dark hair, cowering behind the bed as he tried to find something to cover himself with. The bedclothes were rumpled in a very familiar way. Shepard suppressed a grin. "Did you see an asari come through here?" She asked the man, who gave her a deer-in-the-headlights stare and covered his crotch with a sheet.

There was a whimper from the other side of the room and she turned to see a naked asari struggling to cover herself with a handful of clothes. Shepard nodded to Garrus and he went to help her as she turned back to the man. "This would have been a different asari. More, uh, clothed. Maybe bleeding?"

He pointed a shaking finger to the balcony. Shepard smiled as Tali and Garrus went over. "The Council thanks you for your cooperation."

She ran to the balcony. Below she heard screaming and a gunshot. "Guess we found her."

"Why is there a swimming pool on the roof?" Tali asked as they looked over the edge.

"It's called a lido deck Tali." Shepard spotted Vasir moving through the crowd, too well protected by civilians to risk a shot.

Liara emerged from a door beneath them, running through the crowd.

"Vasir! It's over!"

Shepard watched as Vasir grabbed hold of a woman in the crowd, wrapping an arm around her neck and jamming her pistol into the side of her head. She spoke quietly to the woman as the crowd screamed and broke apart, clearing a direct path between Liara and Vasir. Shepard cursed and looked over the edge, judging the distance. It was pretty far to fall, and she was already so over that.

"Mariana you wanna live don't you?" Vasir's voice was raised enough that they could hear her now. "Tell those people that you wanna live."

"Please." The fear in her voice made Shepard's heart ache. She grabbed the rail and put her foot up on the balustrade.

"Shepard you have got to be joking."

She gave Garrus a look. "What other choice have I got?" She looked back to Vasir. "We'll get you out of here safely Mariana."

"Well, that's good to hear. All you had to do was walk away." Vasir jabbed Mariana in the side of the head. "Now it gets ugly."

"Please, I have a son."

That did it. Shepard pushed off hard and sailed through the air. Her boots slammed hard onto the concrete and she rolled forwards, banging the wound on her hip again. Her shoulder jarred as she came to a halt as well. She managed to get into a crouch, drawing her pistol and training it on Vasir as she stumbled forwards alongside Liara.

"I hope he gets to see you again," Vasir was saying to Mariana. "I've heard losing a parent is just horrific for children." She looked back up at Shepard. "Scars them for life."

"I'm going to end you, Vasir."

She didn't like the growl in Liara's tone. She dropped her pistol and turned to hold Liara's forearm. "It's okay Liara. We'll handle it. The usual way."

Liara stared at her, then realisation began to creep into her eyes. She pointed her pistol up and stepped back as Shepard moved forwards to cover her slightly.

"You want Mariana's little boy to grow up without a mommy Shepard?" Vasir jabbed Mariana in the head again. "Thermal clips on the ground now. Power cells too."

Shepard rolled her eyes and shrugged. "Is that it?"

"What?"

"Vasir, I sacrificed hundreds of human lives to save the Destiny Ascension. I unleashed the rachni on the galaxy." She raised her pistol again and trained it on Vasir. "So for your sake I hope your escape plan doesn't hinge on me hesitating to shoot a damn hostage!"

Mariana looked terrified. It was almost enough to make Shepard crack, but she kept her face impassive. Vasir definitely hesitated though, and her pistol wavered away from Mariana's head. Shepard silently urged Liara to hold on until the gun was properly out of the way of the hostage.

The barrel of the pistol came to aim at Shepard. She breathed slow, tamping down the fear that rose naturally as she stared Vasir down.

"You're bluffing."

"Just try me traitor."

Out of the corner of her eye she saw Liara snap her arm out and a table flew from behind Vasir to slam into her back. She staggered forwards and let Mariana go. The woman ran away, screaming. Shepard opened fire, hearing the crack of Garrus' rifle from above. Vasir's shield died and she turned to run.

A bullet struck Vasir in the small of the back, just below the previous two. She staggered and turned back, opening fire. Shepard's shield sparked. Despite her injuries Vasir was still a brilliant shot; the bullet would have struck Shepard in the head if not for her shield. She shifted to a two handed grip on her pistol and put three bullets right into Vasir's chest.

Blood spewed out of Vasir's mouth and she dropped, putting out a hand to catch herself. A bullet buried itself in her shoulder and she fell to the floor, crying out in pain and rage. Shepard didn't bother with mercy. She was still an extremely dangerous opponent. Shepard knocked the heat sink from her pistol and targeted Vasir's head.

Before she could fire Vasir jumped suddenly to her feet, her biotics powering up again. Shepard cursed and fired two bullets which both disintegrated before they could hit. "Everyone hit the deck!"

She had barely finished shouting when Vasir disappeared. Shepard swept her gun from side to side, trying to figure out what had happened. A moment later a freight truck slammed into her from the side and she flew right across the pool and splashed down in the shallow end. Her head bashed the bottom of the pool and she saw stars. Water rushed into her lungs and she gagged, trying to expel it but getting only the harsh taste of the sterilised liquid.

Spots danced and exploded in her eyes as she thrashed, trying to escape. _Not like this, not again._ She went motionless, a sense of deadly calm falling over her. Her armour would keep her under. The direction she was being pulled was down. In the stillness she felt pressure against her left shoulder and shoved that arm down hard.

Her head broke water and she vomited water, throwing up what felt like half the pool. She spat furiously and looked up just in time to see a blur speeding towards her across the water. _Not this time._

She dropped back, letting the weight of her armour carry her under again. This time she was fully conscious though, and able to keep her eyes open, watching Vasir fade back into the visible spectrum. As she had guessed the attacks were short range, Vasir couldn't keep it up. The asari couldn't even make it to the end of the pool, and she splashed down inches from the edge, her blood staining the water purple.

Shepard shoved herself up above the water line once more, wading for the edge and hauling herself out of the pool. She met Liara at the side nearest Vasir's body, crouching down and hauling her over, snagging the disk off her belt.

"This what you need?"

Liara took it and marched away from the pool. Shepard shook her head and gripped Vasir beneath the shoulders, pulling her out of the pool. Amazingly she was still breathing, but she was definitely not long for the galaxy. Shepard rested her gently by the pool and sat cross legged next to her.

**AN:-** And once more I got rid of a lot of the fighting stuff. When I was trying to write the half dozen gunbattles I just felt like it was really dragging things out.

'Liara's kind of a badass now.' That would be a reference to the second Community paintball episode, referring to Annie. Except of course that Liara's actions, while badass, are also pretty troubling.

The button pushing and Garrus' quipping are a shout out to Men In Black. A movie I love far more than I should. I've been waiting for an opportunity to quote it since day one.

I changed the final fight to be on a lido deck. It was just what I first thought when I saw the space and I thought it would make for a cooler fight scene, what with Shepard getting drowned and all. And of course I couldn't have the fight without using the biotic charge at last once.


	4. Chapter 4: What You Are in the Dark

**AN:-** So I kind of screwed up the chapter breaks. This bit was too long to go with the previous chapter but too short to make its own full chapter out of.

**Chapter Four: What You Are in the Dark**

"You know you're dead," she said quietly.

"Damn it." Vasir coughed up blood. "Damn it."

Liara was talking behind her. "Sekat's personal datapad. This has what we need to find the Shadow Broker."

"You're dead. The Shadow Broker has been in power for decades. He's stronger than anything you've ever faced."

"Is that why you sold out the Council to work for him?" She spotted Garrus, holding up the med-kit, and shook her head. He nodded understanding and returned the kit to his belt. Shepard returned her attention to Vasir, who was glaring at her.

"You think I betrayed the Council? Like Saren? Go to Hell. The Broker's given me damn good intel over the years. Intel that saved lives and kept the Citadel safe. So if the Broker needs a few people to disappear I'll pay that price without hesitation."

Shepard wasn't quite sure what to do. She had never had someone she shot survive for so long afterwards. "Spectres don't blow up buildings filled with innocent people."

"Sure we do. We get our hands dirty so the Council doesn't have to. The councillors might complain about our methods to soothe their consciences, but they never look too closely." There was a grim smile on her lips. "Besides, you're with Cerberus. Do you have any idea what your terrorist friends have done?"

"Your information is out of date. I'm not working for Cerberus anymore." She looked away. "But I see what you mean. I know who they are and what they've done. I would never have worked with them by choice." She looked back down. "You made a choice to do what you've done."

"You always have a choice." Their eyes locked and Shepard saw so many things in them. The fear buried deep, the rage at the front, both against Shepard and her own death. "You wanna judge me? Look in a mirror. Kidnapping kids for biotic death camps. Hell, your own unit on Akuze!" Shepard gritted her teeth. Shooting her now would be murder, plain and simple, but bringing up Akuze made it so tempting. "And you're with them. Don't you dare judge me. Don't you…"

The light went out of her eyes and her head rolled to the side. Her entire body went slack and Shepard heard the final breath bubble past the blood in her throat. She became aware of a noise from behind her which resolved into a voice, distorted by a computer program.

"Eliminate T'soni and retrieve the data. Civilian casualties not a concern."

It could only be the Shadow Broker. Shepard stood and turned to Liara. "Vasir's dead."

She brushed that aside. "I'm putting the data through to the Normandy's computers. We can be at the Shadow Broker's base in a few hours." She deactivated her omni-tool and began the walk back to the cab rank. "He'll know about Vasir before long. If he decides to kill Feron…

Shepard took Liara's arm and pulled her back. "We'll get Feron out of there alive Liara. I promise."

"I know." She rubbed her forehead. "You're here to help. Just like always.

Shepard glanced around, realising just how crowded the balcony was. "That's not a good thing?" She asked quietly.

Liara jerked her head to indicate a quiet hallway they could go down. "When we first met on Therum, you saved me from the geth." They reached the corridor, Garrus and Tali thankfully keeping their distance. "You fought a krogan battlemaster while I cowered. Now you're doing it again." Liara finally turned to look at her. "And I'm still leaning on you for help."

Shepard was suddenly very acutely reminded of her disastrous conversation with Ashley back on Horizon. She had no idea what to say, and could only make a helpless gesture. "That's what friends do Liara."

Liara turned and marched down the hall. "I can get us there, based on Sekat's data. The Normandy's stealth drive will keep them from detecting us. The Shadow Broker's agents are still shooting their way through Ilium. With luck they won't notice we've left until it's too late."

"Liara they killed innocent people."

They were out onto another balcony. "You know what I mean."

"Do I?" She grabbed Liara's arm and spun her round again. "When I hit the ground at the trade centre you went after Vasir without a backwards look."

"A little fall wasn't going to kill you. I had to stay on Vasir. I had to stay rational, make the call. Like I did with Sekat."

"That's Vasir's fault, not yours."

"Sekat had no idea what the stakes were. I put him in harm's way to get the data I needed. I got him killed." Her face was cold as she turned to examine the skyline. "And I'd do it again. But from here on out things will be simple. Get in, get Feron, get out. And kill anyone who tries to stop us."

This was not the woman she had left. "That's it?"

"That's it." Liara went to move on but Shepard got in her way.

"Will you just stop for a second?" She reined back on the volume. "We'll be jumping several light years, there's time to talk."

"About what Shepard?"

"About us?"

"Shepard, listen. I'm glad you're here." Her voice was calm, but Shepard knew her too well. She was faking something.

"You worried there might be terminals you need me to hack?" It came out before she could stop herself. She saw the hurt on Liara's face and had to keep herself from reaching out.

At the very least it got a response. "That's not fair. You were dead!"

They were inches apart. "I came back."

"It's not that easy." Liara stepped away. "You can't just come back and have two years of mourning suddenly vanish." She turned away and rubbed her face. "I'm sorry Shepard. I can't get into this. Not now. For now, let's just focus on getting Feron back."

Shepard took a breath through gritted teeth and slowly released it. "Fine."

**AN:-** Some very minor changes to the dialogue during Vasir's death scene and the confrontation with Liara. Other than that not much else to say about this one.

Please read and review!


	5. Chapter 5: Hagalaz

**AN:- **That took longer than expected.

**Chapter Five: Hagalaz**

Liara spent the entire journey in the Starboard Observation Lounge. She refused to come out and Shepard wasn't sure whether she should go in and talk to her. She had absolutely no idea what to do. She'd never wanted to be back with somebody before, and even then it wasn't exactly a regular breakup. The dead didn't tend to want to start dating again.

The biggest problem was that there wasn't much other work to do on the short hop. She rekitted her armour for the hundredth time, took her guns apart and reconstructed them a few times to make sure they were as fast to open as they could be. It had long been a point of contention between marines and the armoury operators. Armoury operators insisted on being the ones to service weapons, while marines insisted that they needed to be able to trust their own equipment.

_It was so much easier when Ashley Williams was the armoury operator._

Despite Jacob's definite change of focus and priorities no one on the team trusted him with their guns. On the SR-1 it had been obvious that Ashley was the best equipped to handle the weapons, and everyone on the team, bar Wrex, trusted her with the guns. At the very least Shepard was sure it was the paranoia of the team rather than specific distrust of Jacob.

She spent some time working by the CIC, going through the massive influx of messages she now had to deal with now that EDI had unblocked her messages. Most of them were complimentary, but she had also received a message from Corporal Toombes that got her worried. He might well have the chops to make his threat stick.

"Heavy thoughts Shepard?"

"The usual Miranda."

"So yes then."

Kelly had formally requested a transfer off the Normandy during the trip to Alchera. They had let her go on the Citadel along with half a dozen other crew members. Afterwards Miranda had made her own request to take on the position of Yeoman. It had seemed natural after the amount of work she had put into it already.

The entire crew had shifted around since they got out from under Cerberus' yoke. Garrus was now officially her Executive Officer, Miranda her Yeoman, and the rest of the squad had been organised into a rough command structure so that during combat everyone would know who to report to. Shepard was considering starting up their training exercises again, but she wasn't quite sure about damage to the ship.

_We need to get Jack on her feet as well._ She brought up Chakwas' latest report. The implant was in place and responding well so far, but she wouldn't be ready to walk for another week at least. Her natural temperament was aiding her determination to get back on her feet, but Chakwas was worried about the biotic implant interacting with the new implant. All very standard stuff and as always Chakwas had included a note for Shepard at the bottom indicating that she didn't need to worry, it was all routine.

"Miranda what do you know about the Shadow Broker?"

"Not much more than you I'm afraid. I know that he's considered one of TIM's main competitors, but I didn't head the cell that investigated him."

"You're assuming the Shadow Broker's a him."

"Of course, my mistake." Miranda grinned. "Certainly got the smarts to be a woman."

"Never figured you for girl power Miranda."

"Not my father's influence I can assure you." She smiled over at Shepard. "I was a big fan of Black Widow when I was younger."

Shepard chuckled. "Movies or comics?"

"Both. I grew out of it eventually."

"Oh you never want to do that Miranda. If growing up means it would be beneath my dignity to climb a tree, I'll never grow up."

"JM Barrie. I recall your fondness for the classics."

"A classic is something everybody wants to have read, but no one wants to read."

"If we're going to stand here quoting authors at each other we could be here a while."

"Not too long." Shepard brought up a notification on her computer. "Approaching the Sowilo System."

"What's the team gonna look like?" She turned to see Garrus making his way out of the elevator, cane in hand.

"Not you. No offence but I'd prefer your leg intact."

"I got Chakwas to fit me for a brace. It aids movement. I should be fine. And I want to do this. For Liara."

"Well then we need a tech specialist. Guess that's Tali like always."

Miranda came over to join them at Shepard's terminal. "Anyone else? You are going up against the Shadow Broker after all."

"You feeling up to it Miranda?"

She nodded. "One more for a heavy assault?"

"Grunt hasn't been off the ship in a while has he?" Shepard mulled it over. "He'll probably start tearing out bulkheads if we don't get him something to do soon."

"I'll let him know."

Garrus headed for the elevator as well. "I'll tell Liara."

"Really?"

"I just." He sighed and turned back to her as Miranda moved out of earshot. "I thought you'd appreciate it. After what happened on Ilium."

"Thanks Garrus." She shrugged. "I just wish it wasn't necessary."

"You'll work things out."

"How can you be so sure?"

He smiled. "It's you and her." He shrugged, as if this needed no further argument, and stepped into the elevator.

/|\

Hagalaz was an unpleasant planet, and speaking with her amount of experience, that covered a lot of sins.

The Normandy came in with the stealth systems activated right up until they hit atmo. Shepard didn't bother staying up in the cockpit like she might normally have done. When it came to a stealth insertion it was better to leave Joker and EDI in there together. Since she had been unshackled they were working together better than ever. She was glad for it, given that they were nearly thirty percent of their crew down.

In the shuttle bay her squad prepared for the mission. Garrus was checking the brace over his knee, flexing and turning his leg to stretch it out. Tali was working on her omni-tool, as always, while Grunt played around with his guns. Every so often she had the feeling it was more like a child playing rather than an adult testing a weapon, but as long as he didn't actually put a hole in the hull she was prepared to let it slide.

Liara noticed her entrance, but didn't look up from her omni-tool for more than a second. "This shuttle is definitely up to standard atmospheric ratings?"

"Garrus is calibrating it, what do you think?"

"The shuttle will need to be in perfect condition to withstand the harsh weather beneath the surface."

Garrus came up behind her. "The shuttle will be fine Liara. Trust me."

"Very well. We should get going before the Normandy's stealth drive must be deactivated."

Shepard opened her mouth to say something, then shook her head. "Fine. Let's move people."

She watched the small team climb onto the shuttle, then slipped into the copilot's seat besides Garrus. "Nice and easy," she said. "Mind your leg."

"My leg is fine Commander." He shut down the blast shields that surrounded the hole in the cargo hold and flew right out of the side, deliberately bringing them close to the jagged edges to prove how well controlled he had it.

They were already inside the atmosphere, but only just. She could still see the heat rising from the plating of the Normandy as they peeled away into the clouds. Garrus held a steady hand on the controls as the shuttle was battered about by the intense storm they were flying through. According to Liara's coordinates they were aiming for the terminator line, at a very specific point.

"I can't believe she's aiming me for a specific ship," Garrus growled as he accelerated them into the clouds.

"What makes this planet so volatile?"

Liara had come to the door leading into the cockpit. "The oceans boil during the day, then snap freeze ten minutes after sundown."

Shepard looked back. "And the Shadow Broker lives in this?"

"His ship follows the sunset. Completely undetectable in the storm, unless you know where to look."

"How do we get inside?" Miranda shouted from the crew section.

"The shuttle bay is locked down. We'll need to land on the ship and hunt for a hatch. But we can't stay outside for long. There's a constant lightning storm where the hot and cold air collide."

"Wonderful."

They spotted the dark spot of the ship against the clouds. "Bring us in Garrus."

"There's not many safe landing spots."

"Just find us something Garrus."

He nodded and brought the shuttle in over the top of the ship, searching for a safe spot to put them down. About halfway up they came down to a flat patch of hull and Garrus activated the magnetic clamps. They gripped hard in place, though the shuttle continued to shake from the force of the wind.

"We won't be able to leave the shuttle here," Liara said. "The magnetic clamps will disengage."

"We can program the auto-return protocol." Garrus unstrapped himself and elbowed the door release. Wind howled around the cockpit, cold enough to be felt even through her armour.

Shepard opened her own door and stepped out onto the hull, activating her boot magnets to cling to the hull. The back door cycled open and the rest of the squad leapt out, crouching against the high winds.

"This is excellent." Grunt had raised to his full height, holding his arms out to catch the wind. "A fine planet Shepard."

Liara was checking her omni-tool again. "It's hard to pinpoint in this lightning, but I'm picking up signals from a communications array at the back of the ship. There's nothing below but maintenance equipment. We have to find an entrance near the back shielding."

"Are we expecting resistance?" Miranda asked.

"The extreme weather makes external sensors useless. He seems to rely more on the difficulty of finding the location for protection."

Shepard triggered the program and watched as the shuttle disappeared back into the clouds. "Let's not waste time people. He'll be waiting for us."

They set off down the spine of the ship towards the enormous back plating. It wasn't as difficult as she feared to stay on the hull. Once they got moving there were more than enough wind breaks to keep them from being blown clear. Grunt led the way with little difficulty while Garrus limped along beside her. Miranda and Tali took the central position, Liara between them.

It was strange to see. She fit into the team as if she was meant to, but there was definitely hesitance, and Shepard couldn't see where from. She had thought that Liara might join them after things with the Shadow Broker were resolved, but she was beginning to wonder if that would ever happen.

As they scaled down to a gantry set along the side of the ship a floating red orb appeared from a small hatch. It looked like a larger version of Tali's combat drone.

"Hard-light maintenance drone," Garrus said.

One floated next to Grunt and a spark of electricity zapped him in the stomach. He growled and punched the drone, sending it scooting away.

"Why are they attacking?" Shepard asked as she set her scope to her eye.

Liara drew her SMG. "They must think we are debris from the storm."

"How do we stop a hard-light construct."

Tali activated some sort of pulse from her omni-tool and the drone deactivated. "I think I can handle it."

"Let's get back on top." Shepard grabbed a handrail and hauled herself up to the spine of the ship. Ahead were two massive capacitors, gigantic rods which stretched up into the sky, attracting multiple bolts of lightning even as she watched. At the bottom of the rod was the capacitor itself, a massive coil of metal that sparked with electricity.

"That cannot be safe," Tali said as she reached the hull. "Those things carry a huge risk of discharge if touched."

"Is it safe to pass through them at least?"

Liara had reached the top as well. "As long as we do not touch we should be- Ah!" Her shield sparked as bullets whizzed past them. Shepard looked up to see half a dozen commandos just beyond the capacitors. As her team ducked for cover Shepard cocked her head, judging distances.

"Hey Tali."

"What?"

"They close enough?"

Tali poked her head up. "Close enough for wh-" She cottoned on. "Oh. Yes, definitely."

Shepard snapped her pistol up and fired a single bullet into the closest capacitor.

It was a weird experience. There was a massive flash of light that activated the new flash-bang sensitive filters in her eyes, but absolutely no sound. Through the dim filter she saw bolts of lightning strike the soldiers, putting holes in their armour, charred wounds which poured smoke as the bodies dropped to the deck and were swept away by the winds, falling off the sides of the ship and away into the clouds.

Vision returned to her in pieces, just like before. Thankfully her ear filters hadn't closed this time, so she was able to hear her team coming up behind her.

"You still have your knack for unusual solutions." Liara at least sounded appreciative.

"Just call me Alexander."

"I don't understand."

"Don't worry about it Tali."

Shepard moved forwards, in between the capacitors, which were already refilling with lightning. She didn't trust that the bullet in the coils wouldn't cause them to discharge again. Once they were past they climbed another ladder down to the lower gantries again. Shepard looked down the length of the ship as she climbed. It looked like they were getting closer.

Liara pre-empted her order. "Start scanning for an entrance Tali."

"Uh."

Shepard smiled. "It's okay. Go ahead Tali."

"Okay." They kept pushing forwards as Tali opened up her omni-tool and began to sweep the hull, a wire frame model of the ship beginning to form.

"I don't suppose there's any way you can use that to model the inside of the ship?" Garrus asked.

"Maybe once we get inside. It depends on the makeup of the metal."

Another capacitor was ahead, blocking their route. Shepard sighed and resisted the urge to rub the bridge of her nose for the dozenth time that day alone. "Find some way to bring that down. Without killing us."

Liara was beside her again. "There must be a way to move it in order to carry out maintenance."

"Doing maintenance in this weather?" Shepard looked around. "There isn't even a guardrail. I bet the Broker's agents love patrolling the hull."

"At least the view is nice."

Shepard glanced at her to see the faintest hint of a smile. "We were a bad influence on you," she said.

Tali was fiddling with a computer panel, and a moment later the rod retracted back into the centre of the ship, revealing a small metal staircase down into the centre of the ship.

"Will this take us into the Shadow Broker's control room?"

"I think this is just an access point for engine maintenance."

"Let's get down there." Shepard nodded to Grunt, who stomped down the ramp. They followed him down and found a massive series of superconductors that Shepard guessed stretched nearly the entire length of the ship. They were charged with lightning from the capacitors, rising and falling as the power surged through them.

Liara was examining the engine with an expression Shepard recognised. Apparently she still wasn't able to conceal her look of fascination at something new and unexpected. "This ship is incredible. It must have taken decades to build in secret."

Shepard stepped behind her and looked up as one of the gigantic disks slid into place above them. "I wonder what happened to the contractors," she drawled.

"They were probably killed by the Shadow Broker once their work was done."

Shepard hid a smile. Whenever she got onto a tangent Liara was utterly incapable of recognising sarcasm of any sort. They started to move down to where Grunt had found an exit hatch. Despite the multitude of shock absorbers and inertia dampeners the ship still shook from the force the winds were exerting on it.

"Navigating this storm is brutal. If the ship's engines stop even for a moment…" Liara trailed off and shrugged. "At least the Shadow Broker would go down with us." She sounded far too calm.

From ahead Miranda snorted. "That's comforting."

At the other end of the walkway Grunt was gesturing. Shepard hurried up to find him standing in front of a locked door. "Is this going to throw us out into space?" She asked Tali.

"We'll be pretty low on the hull, but there should be handholds for us to climb."

"Right. Pop the door."

"On it."

They stepped away to let her work, Shepard going to Liara again. "We must be almost there."

"It's probably at the top of the hull from here."

"Probably? How much longer are we going to be walking for?"

"Not long, I'm sure."

"All right, I'll trust you."

The door opened and wind rushed into the corridor again, threatening to shove them back.

"Come on people, let's go."

Grunt took the lead again, followed by Miranda. They stepped out onto a thin platform, then swung themselves up onto metal rungs which had been set into the side of the ship. They curved back, following the hull. For several long, terrifying moments they would be in very real danger of being swept off the ladders. Shepard covered a shiver by rolling her shoulders and followed Liara as she pulled her up onto the rungs.

The metal was slippery from rain, and even with the non-slick textures on their gloves they still slid slightly from the force of the wind. Shepard's boot slipped right off one of the rungs and she dangled for a moment supported only by her arms. She quickly got herself back on, looking up to see Liara determinedly hauling herself further up.

Her eyes slid a little lower. Not the worst view to be following.

As if she had sensed the look Liara turned her head to look back to Shepard, who quickly averted her eyes. Liara visibly paled and shrank against the ladder.

"Okay, looking down was clearly a mistake."

"That's why I was looking up." She had said that way too quickly, and Liara had clearly noticed. For a moment her eyebrow quirked up and Shepard had a very vivid memory of the last time she had seen that look. Then it vanished and was replaced by a harsh glare.

Shepard gritted her teeth and carried on climbing, trying not to wish that things could be different. She neared the top and felt a hand grip her wrist, hoisting her up onto a solid platform. Over to her right Tali and Garrus were kneeling by a hatch, clearly trying to run a bypass on it.

"This system is amazing," Tali was saying. "I've never seen anything like it. It looks like he's running his entire system through a language I've never seen before."

"Is that even possible?"

Liara stepped past, opening her own omni-tool. "The Shadow Broker is a gifted information broker skilled in cryptography. It's not beyond the realm of possibility that he has created his own language for secure communications."

"That doesn't help me."

"I have a bypass shunt program that can crack this door lock."

"You could have just said that."

Shepard was watching over their shoulders as Liara uploaded the program into the door lock. "How long will it take? To highlight her point an alarm sounded the moment the shunt was in place.

Liara backed up, drawing her SMG. "I don't know Shepard. I've never broken into the Shadow Broker's base before." A commando came over the hull of the ship and she popped him through the helmet. "Well not this one anyway."

Shepard brought up her own pistol and shot a trooper holding a rocket launcher. He managed to fire it anyway, but the missile went over their heads and exploded against the hull. More heads popped over the top and a hail of gunfire bounced off their shields. Grunt returned fire, roaring in glee as his assault rifle chattered in his hands. Next to him Garrus set his sniper rifle to his eye and fired rhythmically.

As her shields began to fail she ducked down behind a hull and leaned back against the metal, waiting for her window. Liara was next to her, flaring slightly blue.

"You're sure that shunt will work?" Shepard asked as she leaned out and emptied the rest of her clip at a salarian controlling a drone with his omni-tool.

Liara shrugged, leaning out as well and firing several short bursts from her gun. "It's illegal even on Ilium. It didn't come with a warranty."

Shepard frowned at her, knocking a new heat sink into place. "But you tested it right?"

"Here come more of them."

"Tell me you tested it."

She leaned out and fired again. "No time to talk."

Shepard grumbled and leaned out to double check the commandos. They were beginning to overrun Grunt and Garrus' position, forcing them to retreat. Shepard looked across to where Miranda and Tali were holed up near the door. She toggled the squad comm.

"We need to give them some cover fire."

"Understood Commander."

"On my signal, Garrus, Grunt, fall back to my position." Shepard switched to her submachine gun, leaning out to check the enemy positions. "Now!"

Garrus and Grunt raced back as the squad opened fire. They skidded into cover just as Shepard's gun ran dry. The Broker's forces were still coming, and it didn't look like they were going to let up any time soon. The Broker seemed to have bet the majority of his forces on taking them out at the door. She had to admit; if they couldn't get through the door they would be pinned down and killed. It was a pretty decent tactic.

Tali came over the comm link. "Liara!"

"I'm sure it won't be much longer."

Shepard leaned out to fire but was forced back by the amount of fire. "Remember the old days when you could just slap omni-gel on everything?"

"That security upgrade made a lot of people unhappy."

"We need to get to the door."

"If we fall back we lose any advantage."

A rocket exploded against the outside of their cover, flame licking round the edge to catch at Shepard's elbow. "We don't have much of one now." She triggered the squad link again. "Get ready to cover us."

"Commander we don't have any more space to fall back."

"Just do it Miranda. On my signal."

Another missile hit their position and blew through the sheet, exposing them to even more fire. "That would be the signal." Shepard grabbed Liara's hand. "Run!"

They sprinted the short distance back to the cover of the door, their shields flaring they shorting out just as they ducked into cover, Liara on one side Shepard on the other.

"What do we do now Commander?" Garrus was above her, leaning out to pop one of the troops through the faceplate.

"Their attacks are disorganised. They'd be more effective if they attacked all at once."

Shepard switched to her rifle. "Liara don't give the mercs ideas." She leaned out and shot an asari in the chest, sending her spinning off the hull of the ship. "If we can just hold here a little longer Liara's shunt should open the door."

Tali was racking a new sink into her shotgun. "I can't believe we did better against the Collectors."

A bullet punched through the shoulder joint of Shepard's armour and she fell back, grabbing the wound to try and staunch the blood flow. "Grunt. Introduce 'em to VERA."

She could imagine the smile on his face as he swung the ML-77 off his back. The stubby attachment of the Velocity Enhancing Recoil Adapter protruding from the end. As Grunt fired a missile into the centre of the Broker's troops Miranda knelt to apply medi-gel to Shepard's wounds.

"You know Wilson campaigned to have a medical endoskeleton fused to your bones," she said as she worked.

"I saw."

"I'm starting to wish I'd said yes."

"Why didn't you?"

"Usual concerns about your humanity. Plus I argued you were a sniper, so if you got that badly shot then something had gone wrong."

"Right." Shepard hissed as the wound was sealed by biofoam. "Remind me again why you were in charge?"

"The next wave looks like a big one," Garrus said from somewhere above her."

"You just had to give them tactical advice didn't you Liara?" Tali drawled.

"But now there'll be fewer left to deal with inside."

"Yeah." Shepard got to a crouch and reloaded. "Keep dreaming T'soni."

At the first sight of white armour she opened fire, the AM round taking the man's entire head off. Garrus and Grunt opened up in sync, stitching their line of fire across from the flanks to drive the commandos either together or into cover. Once they were clumped up Tali and Miranda were able to concentrate their fire, overloading shields and bringing down at least two of the troops.

Shepard ducked back and looked over to Liara. "We're not going to hold for much longer."

"Just give it a moment!"

"We don't have a moment!"

Liara ducked back as well and glared at her. "Don't snap at me."

"You're the one who brought us here!"

"You're supposed to be the expert soldier!"

"The hatch is open!"

Garrus' voice broke through their argument and they dropped back on instinct, Grunt and Garrus providing cover for the rest until they were inside. The second they were inside Tali set about reversing the door, chucking something out into the storm.

"What was that?" Shepard asked as the door slammed closed on the storm.

There was a muffled thumping noise from outside and the inside of the hull filled with static electricity.

"There was a capacitor over the door." Tali finished breaking the door lock. "Hopefully I just blew it out and took out most of the squad."

"Fantastic." Shepard looked to Garrus, who was leaning against the wall and favouring his left leg. "You good?"

"I'm good."

"Let's keep moving."

And, of course, at that moment a bullet sparked off Grunt's shield.

**AN:-** Once again I'm going to use the DLC to show some other minor subplots which didn't make it into the original novelisation. In a small way Toombes' message is one of those.

I loved writing Miranda and Shepard debating at each other. Particularly the quote-off. The first quote is from JM Barrie, author of Peter Pan, the second is from Mark Twain and is one of my favourite quotes regarding literature, especially after university (there were some major elitists on my course.)

One of the central problems of Shepard's relationships is, I guess, Mass Effect 2. If you're with someone in ME1, ME2 will break up that relationship, and is definitely when Garrus becomes Shepard's Second in Command. And how exactly would the Love interest respond to Garrus becoming the most trusted?

My favourite sci-fi novel phrase is 'hit atmo.' I don't know why.

I cut well over half the combat on the Shadow Broker's ship. As always the Mass Effect DLC is padded with extra gunfights. Fun to play, boring to read and write.

I feel like I shouldn't explain the 'just call me Alexander' crack but that wouldn't be fair. It's a reference to Alexander the Great and the Gordian Knot.

The little bit with Shepard giving Tali permission to scan for an entrance is important. Liara has gotten used to giving orders as an information broker. But Shepard is the Commander to Tali. But Liara did once travel with them and held an informal position as basically Shepard's Second in Command back on the SR-1. so if she gave orders on the SR-1 Tali would likely obey without question, but she doesn't know whether she should now or not. Which is why she hesitates and Shepard has to give her permission.

Bypass systems in Mass Effect are a bit difficult to figure out. Because fiddling with the wires suggests that you've actually removed some sort of cover and are dealing with the internal guts of the lock, but particularly in ME1 it looks more like you're cracking a numeric keypad type thing. Liara refers to a shunt, which in real life is a physical thing you insert into a computer system. But then it takes time to work, like a computer software cracking program. So what I imagine is that there are two types of hacking:

1\. You break the panel off the lock and hack the wires themselves.

2\. You use a computer program to break the digital lock.

Since I imagine the Shadow Broker would be quite careful, he's probably sealed the panel on the lock somehow, which is why you have to use a computer program, not a physical hack.

And finally a minor Doctor Who and Star Wars shout out in the final gunfight.


	6. Chapter 6: Lair of the Shadow Broker

**AN:- **Getting there, slowly but surely.

**Chapter Six: The Lair of the Shadow Broker**

Shepard dropped back into the cover of a heavy metal beam set in the side of the wall. Bullets pinged around them as they all found cover. Liara was across the corridor from her, drawing her gun.

"More of them?" She grumbled as she returned fire. "How many guards does the Shadow Broker have?"

"Told you," Tali said as she shot an asari through the chest.

Shepard put a pistol bullet through the knee of a guy in cover, then took his head off at the neck. "This is ridiculous." She looked back. "Grunt?"

"Yes?"

"Smash."

He grinned and racked his assault rifle, drawing the shotgun in his other hand. With a bellow that succeeded in activating Shepard's ear filters he broke cover and sprinted forwards; his shield taking several major hits before the enemy realised that he wasn't stopping. She heard a panicked fall back order, followed by shotgun blasts and the thuds of bodies hitting the floor.

Liara was watching it all unfold. "He's not as a disciplined as Wrex, but he has his uses."

"Well he saved my life a few weeks ago, so I've grown quite fond of him."

"You will have to share your adventures someday."

The gunfire had stopped and Grunt was panting happily. Shepard stepped out and followed him further down the winding corridor. Tali was at her shoulder, omni-tool out and scanning.

"I've downloaded the ship's layout. We're heading for the prison block."

"And Feron," Liara said grimly.

They ran through the corridor, encountering no further resistance. For a moment Shepard allowed herself to believe that there wouldn't be any more agents left. But around the corner there were two more men in armour outside what was quite obviously a cell of some kind. Shepard shot one of them through the head while Grunt shotgunned the second in the chest. Both men dropped before they had even had a chance to grab their guns.

Tali got to work on opening the cell door immediately as the others spread out to clear the area. Shepard grabbed Garrus before he could limp out and shoved him against the desk.

"You need to see Chakwas when you get back," she said.

"I'm fine."

"You can barely walk. You need to take it easy."

"You know a good time to tell someone to take it easy?" He pushed off from the desk and limped over to the cell door. "Sometime when he's not in the middle of a life or death situation."

Shepard was still rolling her eyes when Tali opened the door. Liara ran straight past them and into the cell, skidding to a halt before a giant blacked out window.

"Feron?"

The glass lightened until it was fully transparent, revealing a drell strapped into some sort of torture chair. Shepard saw abrasions beneath the shackles on his wrists which suggested he had been bound for a very long time, and there was some sort of device strapped to his head, burn marks beneath conductive pads. He raised his head slowly, breathing with some difficulty as his eyes struggled to focus on the window.

"Liara?" His voice was soft and hoarse.

Liara punched the window. It didn't even rattle in the frame. "Hold on, we're getting you out of here!"

He jerked against the bonds. "No!" The machine behind him hummed to life and he convulsed, screaming as electricity sparked from beneath the pads on his head. Liara hammered on the glass again.

"Feron!"

Shepard resisted the urge to pull her away. The shocks died down and she spoke directly to him. "What the hell is the Broker trying to do to you?"

"The equipment is sensitive to tampering." Now he was calmer his voice was very similar to Thane's. "This chair plugs into the Broker's info network. You have to shut off the power. Pull me out now, and my brain cooks."

Liara was back in control of herself again. "Do you know where we can cut the power?"

"It won't be easy. You'll have to go to Central Operations."

Shepard forced a grin. "Well we were heading there anyway, might as well make it a round trip."

"Good. Central operations is down the hall." He forced himself to sit further up and met Liara's eyes. "You know the Shadow Broker's waiting for you right?"

She nodded, grim determination settling into her face. "I'm counting on it." She marched back out of the prison cell.

"We'll be back for you Feron."

He sank back into the chair with a wheeze. "I'll try not to go anywhere."

Gunshots from further in grabbed her attention and she ran out of the cell, finding the rest of the squad also springing to action. They sprinted down the hall where the gunfire had come from to find half a dozen bodies laid out, each with a bullet right in between their eyes.

"Keelah."

Garrus nodded agreement. "Yep."

At the end of the corridor she could see Liara standing in front of a locked door, her omni-tool already opened. She swept it over the lock, then raised her pistol and emptied it into the control panel. The door sparked and opened to reveal a darkened room beyond.

"Liara!"

She didn't wait, marching in alone, her pistol held before her. Shepard put on a burst of speed and made it through just as the door slammed closed. She stumbled to a stop, still somehow managing to check the corners and sweep the room. Her eyes lit on a massive figure hunched behind a desk in the very centre of the room. The only light came from a globe above his head that glowed with some sort of phosphorescent liquid that filled the room with a soft white light.

"Here for the drell?" His voice was deep and rich. It echoed in the space, revealing that the room was much larger than it had first appeared. "Reckless, even for you Commander."

She trained her pistol about where his head would be. "That bombing on Ilium wasn't exactly subtle."

"Extreme, but necessary."

"No it wasn't." Liara was moving a slow circle closer to the desk. Shepard matched her on the other side. "Neither was caging Feron for two years."

"Dr T'soni your interference caused all this. Feron betrayed me when he handed you Shepard's body. The drell is simply paying the price."

Shepard spoke before Liara. She could see the rage in her friend's eyes. "Someone was bound to come after you for working with the Collectors."

"It was a mutually beneficial partnership. Fortunately the Normandy's IFF will allow me to salvage the remains of the Collector's base."

_You are never getting your hands on that ship. _"It'll be pretty hard to run a base this size with no crew."

"They're replaceable. Your arrival is barely an interruption. Enough talk. My operations are too crucial to be compromised by a traitor."

He was entirely too calm. Liara put words to her own concern. "You're quite confident for someone with nowhere else to hide."

"You travel with fascinating companions Doctor. Archangel, Okeer's project, Tali'Zorah vas Neema, or is it vas Normandy? And of course Miranda Lawson. Her death will cripple Cerberus. And the plunder in bounties and information will more than compensate me for this futile attempt."

"You're not putting a hand on anyone."

"It's pointless to challenge me asari." He was definitely getting angry. "I know your every secret, while you fumble in the dark."

Liara bristled, then suddenly relaxed. Even in the dim light Shepard saw her lip quirk. "Is that right?" She knew that tone. She had usually heard it when Liara suspected Shepard of lying about moving her files or playing on her computer. "You're a yahg, a pre-spaceflight species that was quarantined to their homeworld for massacring the Council's first contact teams. This base is older than your planet's discovery, which probably means you killed the original Shadow Broker sixty years ago, then took over. I'm guessing that you were taken from your homeworld by a trophy hunter who wanted a slave." Her smile widened. "Or a pet."

The Shadow Broker was shaking with rage. Shepard tightened her grip on her pistol, resting her finger on the trigger and preparing for the inevitable explosion. Liara pressed again, her tone that same insufferably adorable smugness, just like when she had figured out the Protheans were not the first species to inhabit Ilos. "How am I doing?""

In the gloom the massive figure hunched forwards and Shepard could see his shoulders were shaking. Now he had moved she could see his head with more clarity. Either he was wearing a helmet or he definitely wasn't human. Twin horns that reminded her of a salarian stretched up from his head, which was at least as big as a krogan's.

The Shadow Broker leapt to his feet with a roar that shook the room. He was illuminated for a moment in the dim light and Shepard couldn't hold back shock. He was enormous, eight feet tall at least. His arms were at least as thick as her torso, his chest a barrel that strained against the thick cloth of the suit he was wearing. He slammed his fists into the desk and it split in two, shards of metal splintering into the room.

Shepard realised a second too late what he was going to do. She tried to move but he threw the desk faster than she would have imagined. The heavy metal slammed into her shoulder and sent her flying back into the wall, where her entire back lit up in pain. Finally she crashed to the floor, her forearms registering the shock as she was jarred against the hard surface. She gave herself a second to let her vision settle, then sprang forwards, aiming for where the Shadow Broker had been before.

He had already moved, heading for Liara. She got a brief glimpse at his face, four eyes on either side of his head, a strange mouth, three pronged, extending from the centre of his face. His skin was a deep red, patterned with white markings that she didn't recognise. He covered the room in only a couple of bounds, wrapping his hand round Liara's throat and lifting her into the air.

Shepard changed direction, raising her pistol and putting two shots into the Broker's back. He snarled and tightened his grip, choking a gasp out of Liara. The sound went right to Shepard's heart, in one second bringing back all the feelings she had been trying to keep buried. In a moment she was beside the Broker, jamming her gun into the back of his knee. She emptied the remaining four shots and he dropped to one knee, releasing Liara, who rolled away.

She didn't give him a second to recover, driving her fist hard into his neck. The Broker roared at her, swinging his arm to try and beat her. Moving with practiced ease she ducked the blow and used the momentum to power an elbow strike to his shoulder joint. He reeled back, getting back to his feet. She brought her pistol up alongside his face and released the heat sink catch.

The heat sink hit him in the face and he recoiled, roaring again as steam rose from his cheek. Before the heat sink could drop she struck out with her palm, pushing the heat sink harder against his head. The heat burned her even through the glove, smoke seeping through her fingers as she grabbed hold of his lapel to keep herself steady. He screamed and beat at her with his gigantic fists but he had no leverage.

He reared backwards as something struck him from behind and they staggered back to the ruins of the desk. She kept her death grip on his jacket, the heat sink still in place. She saw a white blur out of the corner of her eye and let go, dropping to the floor and rolling for cover as Liara threw one of the desk halves at him. It didn't even reach him, breaking against a stasis field he had erected around himself.

Shepard found her pistol and reloaded as Liara ran next to her. "We need to break that field."

"He can't move while he's under it, let him stew."

"Yahg have an amazing reproductive system, comparable to krogan."

"Oh, right." Shepard snapped off a couple of shots but they simply glanced off.

"The shield's kinetically sensitive. Energy and projectiles will bounce off."

Kinetic barriers had one major failing. They were only effective against fast moving projectiles. Fists would be slow enough to get through them. Shepard cracked her knuckles, rolling her head. "I guess there's the hard way then."

She ran forwards, drawing her fist back and launching a punch which knocked the Broker down on his bad leg. He went for a punch that she was able to easily block, kicking him hard in the stomach. Gunshots sounded behind her and she turned to see Liara emptying her pistol. She turned to punch him again but he had brought up a hard light barrier.

Her fist slammed against the shield and he shoved her right off the floor and through the air to land hard several feet away. She struggled up again, seeing Liara strafing round the outside of the room with her submachine gun chattering. He used the shield to catch the bullets, but that left him open to Shepard's attack.

She gave up on the pistol, drawing her rifle and putting an armour piercing slug through his lower back. The bullet blasted clean through his torso and impacted against the shield from the inside. He staggered and fell to the floor, hacking blood onto his shirt. The kinetic barrier activated before she could make a follow up shot, but she had counted on that, already running forwards and shoving her rifle under his chin, yanking back hard.

The barrier broke and he gurgled as she heaved back as hard as she could. The metal dug into his neck and forced another hacking cough out of him, more blood dripping onto his chin. She braced herself and tightened her grip, slowly choking the Broker. Liara ran round the front of him and fired into his chest, the bullets tearing open his suit and spraying blood everywhere.

She expected him to weaken, she expected him to fall to the floor and die like a regular being. Instead he roared and somehow managed to find the strength to throw her off and across the room to crash into Liara. They tumbled to the floor, trying to get up and away before he came after them again. Thankfully his wounds were clearly taking their toll, and he wasn't able to charge them down. Shepard grabbed Liara and dragged her for cover behind one of the pillars.

Liara had a bruise spreading across her cheek, but she still had determination in her eyes. "If you can get him to bring up that shield again. I've got an idea."

Shepard slumped a little, feeling the aches and bruises already settling in. "Come on…"

"Just one more time I promise."

"Fine."

She looked out to see the Shadow Broker limping away, probably heading for an escape route. She sighed and stepped out of cover, raising her pistol and putting another half clip into his back. The Broker turned to face her, panting as he struggled to draw breath into punctured lungs.

"You're not going anywhere," she said.

"You owe me Commander. For Kahoku. For bringing the krogan to you. The galaxy cannot continue to function without me."

She shrugged. "Well you replaced the last Broker so it clearly functioned without him. And you did also try to sell my body to the Collectors. I'm kind of irritated about that." She fired again, hitting him in the burned portion of his face. "Plus you hurt Liara."

He was clearly gathering his strength, coming towards her on unsteady legs. "The asari brought this on herself."

"You don't understand." He was almost directly below the giant glowing ball now, right in the centre of the room. Shepard had the feeling Liara's plan would have something to do with it. She raised her pistol and centred it on his forehead. "No one hurts my girl."

He activated the barrier a second before she fired and both bullets deflected harmlessly. But before he could lower the field there was a sudden shear of gravity and a pulse of biotic blue impacted against the underside of the dome. The glass cracked and the liquid inside poured out, completely covering the Broker. Inside his barrier he was frozen as the liquid seeped into his wounds, covering his eyes and mouth. The pressure dropped him to his hands and knees as his skin began to glow with the infused liquid.

She had had more than enough experience with strange liquids that started glowing. Grabbing Liara again she ran for cover, getting to the doorframe just as the Shadow Broker exploded, showering the room with foul smelling goop that still glowed faintly as it ran to the corners of the room.

Liara peeked out from the doorway and wrinkled her nose at the sight. "That is one of the most disgusting things I have ever seen."

Shepard couldn't help but think of Wasea exploding like a balloon. "Yeah, gross."

They stepped back into the room. "Can we get this door open?" Shepard asked as Liara found a desk computer. "The team's gotta be worried."

"I'll do what I can."

Multiple monitors activated all at once, flashing with messages for incoming calls.

"Shadow Broker, this is Operative Morat." She recognised a salarian voice. "We had a momentary connection failure. Can you confirm status?"

"Operative Shora requesting update. Are we still online?" And an asari.

"Shadow Broker, I've lost our feed. We are online and awaiting instructions." Possibly a turian.

The voices continued to pile up, filling the room with a dozen voices that echoed around them as Liara stood before the monitors, tracking her eyes across every screen. As Shepard watched in awe she leaned forwards and pressed a button in the centre of the keyboard.

"This is the Shadow Broker." Her voice was calm. "The situation is under control. We experienced a power fluctuation while upgrading hardware. It disrupted communications momentarily. However, we are now back online." She took a breath and Shepard saw a new light entering her eyes, one she didn't recognise. "Resume standard procedures. I want a status report on all operations within the next solar day. Shadow Broker out." She toggled the button again.

Behind them the door opened, and Shepard turned to see her squad racing in, weapons ready. Feron was with them, limping and favouring his ribs, but very much alive.

"Goddess of oceans," he said as they skidded into the room. "It's you, you… how?"

Liara was still staring at the screens. Shepard could see that her hands were shaking. "Well everyone who's ever seen him in person is dead, so…"

Miranda's eyes were wider than Shepard had ever seen. "You're the new Shadow Broker."

"Is taking over as the Shadow Broker really a good idea?" Tali had found the light, and the room was illuminated to show banks of computer monitors, dozens of files and OSDs ascattered everywhere.

"It was either that or lose everything." Shepard knew that tone. She stepped closer on instinct. "His contacts, his trading sources. Those will really help us." She turned to face them, tears streaming down her face. "With the Shadow Broker's information network I can give you, I can…" She fell back, bringing her hands up to cover her face.

Garrus saved the moment. "Let's make sure the ship is clear. Come on."

The door cycled closed as Shepard reached Liara, wrapping her into an embrace. They clung to each other, Liara sobbing into Shepard's shoulder, as though all the tension and stress was pouring out of her all at once.

"It's over," she said in between the sobs. "It's finally… For two years…"

They fell back slightly until they were resting on the edge of the computer desk, Shepard supporting Liara as her tears finally subsided.

"It's all right," she murmured, over and over again.

Liara pulled slightly away and Shepard met her eyes, arms still wrapped around each other's waists. She was surprising when Liara darted forwards and kissed her on the lips. It was brief, but Shepard could feel the emotions building behind it. She could only imagine the look of shock on her face as Liara pulled back again.

"It's been two years. I don't…" Liara shook her head, but she wasn't letting go. "We're different people. There's just so much to work through. Trust has to be built again on both sides. I have to know if you're even the same person you were. I know I'm not. Do we even fit in each other's lives?" She was pulling Shepard in closer. "It's a long and important process, and can we just skip it?" Her eyes were pleading. "Can you just be kissing me now?"

She didn't know who moved first but all of a sudden they were together again, lips pressed hard against each other as their arms moved, rediscovering the old familiar feel of each other's bodies. Her hands found Liara's hips and she lifted her right onto the computer desk. Liara's legs hooked round her back and pulled her in even closer. Liara's jacket came unbuttoned and she grabbed Shepard's hand, putting it against her chest.

Grinning against Liara's lips Shepard moved her hand lower, pulling Liara's shirt out. She couldn't really feel anything through her glove, but Liara was already working on that, taking her hand back and undoing the seals. Their lips hadn't broken apart since they started and breathing was becoming more of an issue.

Shepard ran her hand down Liara's spine, trying to take in the soft feel of the skin beneath her fingertips. There was a knock from somewhere deeper in the room and Shepard came back to her senses, stepping back a little and bringing her hand out from under Liara's jacket.

"Okay…" Liara took a deep, shuddering breath and let it out, brushing the last remaining tears from her eyes. "Okay."

Shepard grinned. "Okay?"

Liara nodded. "Okay." She unwrapped her legs and let Shepard go, pushing herself off the desk and straightening her jacket. "But, we should focus." She turned to the computer and brought up a central monitor. "Let's see what our options are." She flicked through several screens, filtering through the information faster than Shepard was able to track. "No safeguards or user restrictions. It's like he never anticipated anyone but himself being here. And it's all ours."

Shepard snapped her glove back into place. "What kind of information are we talking about?"

"I'm not sure. I'll need to go through his files. Come back later and I'll try to have something useful for you." She leaned against the desk. "All I wanted was to rescue Feron, but is it wrong that part of me wants this?" She turned back with a smile on her lips. "With the Shadow Broker's network I can help you. Maybe I can turn this operation into something… better?"

Shepard nodded, wishing they could just keep going with their earlier activities. But she recognised when the mood was over. "Don't be a stranger this time."

"Small chance of that." She reached out to brush Shepard's cheek. "Don't leave the system. I'll visit the Normandy soon."

**AN:-** Grunt smash is obviously from Marvel comics/movies Incredible Hulk.

Using the heat sink to deliberately burn someone was a trick I'd been wanting to write since the very beginning of the second novelisation. As always i increased the amount of punishment and tricks involved in the fight. No hiding behind cover and emptying various weapons for my novel! I also added some more dialogue specific to the Commander. Logic dictates that this is the same Shadow Broker who was kind of helpful in the first game. But of course no one hurts Liara and gets away with it.

I expanded the big damn kiss a little. Added some dialogue from Buffy the Vampire Slayer because it just seemed so completely appropriate to the situation.

So just one final chapter/epilogue, and then I'll get on with Overlord.


	7. Epilogue

**AN:-** And the Lair of the Shadow Broker finally comes to an end.

**Epilogue**

It took one full solar day before Liara requested permission to board the Normandy. Shepard had managed to get some decent sleep, which was still a minor miracle. Chakwas had done the usual rounds but beyond some bruises and scrapes there was nothing too bad. Shepard had returned to her room to keep working through the several thousand messages she had received. Mostly it was just well-wishers or spam, but she had come across a couple of interesting reports about missing supplies or potential excavation sites.

As the hours dragged on it was getting more and more difficult to convince herself she was actually working instead of trying to pass the time. She showered and dressed, then changed her outfit twice before giving up and dressing in something comfortable instead of the more formal suits. She made the bed, then unmade it so it didn't look like a military bunk. Finally she sat on her sofa and pretended to read, checking the door every ten seconds and rereading the same sentence at least a dozen times.

Finally the door chimed and she activated it, putting the book aside as Liara walked in.

She was wearing the silver dress she had bought from the Citadel, nearly three years before. It was sleek and shimmery and brought out the blue in her skin, making the contrast even more pronounced. It had a square neckline and left the shoulders exposed while long sleeves covered down to her wrists, tapering to a point on the back of her hands. The faint light from the fish tank illuminated her from behind, making her glow.

Shepard got up from the sofa, standing awkwardly in the middle of the room. She felt suddenly very underdressed. She fought to find something to say.

"Did you enjoy the tour?"

Liara smiled, and the dimple succeeded in taking away the mystical look she had. "Yes. It's a beautiful ship. And I ran into Joker. He seemed happy to see me." She raised an eyebrow and walked to the top of the stairs. "Although he did ask if you and I would be embracing eternity later."

Shepard rubbed the bridge of her nose, climbing the stairs to stand across from her, leaning on her desk. "Of course he did."

"It is good to see the old crew again. And the mission reminded me of the old days as well. For the most part at least."

Shepard grinned. "We've been in a couple of scrapes. But it's not been the same." She shook her head. "What even was that hotel?"

Liara's smile turned a little embarrassed. "Azure. It's a luxury resort with an exotic edge." That was a euphemism Shepard had heard before. "Azure is slang for a part of the asari body, in some places on Ilium"

"Where?" She twitched her eyebrow up but Liara didn't react.

"The lower reaches, near the bottom."

"I meant where on the asari body."

"So did I."

_Oh my Doctor T'soni._ She cleared her throat as Liara looked away, blushing dark blue.

"I uh, I also spoke with Dr Chakwas. I'm glad she's doing well."

"Well she has crew to stitch up and a top of the line facility. She's happy."

Liara brought her arm out from behind her back, holding a small box with a hinged lid. It reminded Shepard of a necklace case. "I brought you something. It took some digging, but…" She opened the case to reveal two small metal squares attached to a chain. They were burned almost beyond recognition but Shepard still recognised them. "I recovered your tags."

Shepard took the box with a shaking hand. "I thought I'd never see these again."

"You can't get back everything you lose." Liara stepped next to her, examining the dogtags. "But sometimes you get lucky."

"Yeah." Shepard looked up to see Liara watching her. "That was the plan."

They split apart again, Shepard going to put the box on her desk while Liara went to examine the fish tank. "How are you actually doing Maia?" She asked. "I mean for real, not what you tell your squad to keep morale up."

"Between you and me?" She meant to make a joke. She meant to brush it off. But something made her shoulders sag for a moment and she closed her eyes. "I have no idea how I'm still standing. I'm doing everything I can, but…"

Liara's hands were on her shoulders, pulling her into a hug. "You've done more than most. You and your team destroyed the Collectors and walked out alive."

"Not everyone made it. And Zaeed's betrayal."

"It wasn't a betrayal. I've seen the reports. He wasn't one of yours. Not in the way the others are. He was a mercenary. And as for Thane and Samara…" She stepped back, her hands still on Shepard's shoulders. "Thane was dying anyway. Sacrificing himself was as noble a cause as any. And there are things about Samara which make me wonder if she may have welcomed death in many ways."

"How do you know?"

"I'm the Shadow Broker now. I have access to a lot of files. I've tried not to pry but it's a little difficult."

"Do you think I should know about Samara?"

"It's your decision. But I've got the files if you want to read them." She let go and walked back to the fish tank. "And I need to talk to Miranda before I leave. There are some things she might want to talk with you about."

"More personal missions to go on for my crew?"

Liara chuckled. "You might complain, but we both know you prefer doing things like this. Particularly instead of fighting the Collectors."

Shepard came over to stand by her. There were no fish in the tank, but it was still peaceful to look at. "We fought them in their own base and we won. They can't call us young or primitive anymore."

"Young? You know I'm a hundred and nine. A hundred and ten in a few months."

Shepard ran the dates through her head, converting them to Thessian standard. "Of course. I should get you something nice."

Liara's hand found hers and their fingers intertwined. "You're alive again. I've got everything I want." She turned to take Shepard's other hand. "So tell me what you want. If this all ends tomorrow, what happens to us?"

"I don't know. Marriage, old age, and a lot of little blue children?"

"You just say these things. Goddess, you were dead."

"I was." She shook her head and blinked back tears. "Jesus I was dead. And now I'm not. I still can't believe it sometimes."

"When the Reapers finally arrive you're going to dive into the fray." Liara pulled herself a step closer. "I spent two years mourning you. So if we're going to try this, I need to know you're always coming back."

"That's a big promise to make." She couldn't help but smile. "I'd have to have something special to come back to."

"Oh really?" Liara dropped her hands and stepped back, cocking her hip and raising an eyebrow. "You have some suggestions?"

Shepard shrugged. "I'm sure I could think of something."

"I'm sure you could." Liara turned and walked down the stairs, heading for the bed. "But I might have a few suggestions of my own."

"Why Doctor T'soni, you surprise me."

She came down the stairs but before they reached the bed Liara turned and put a hand on her chest, stopping her in place. She opened her mouth to speak but stopped when Liara held up a finger. She stayed rooted to the spot as Liara sashayed closer, gripping the collar of the leather jacket and pulling it off her in one swift motion.

Shepard was left standing in the middle of the room while Liara held the jacket up to examine it. "This is very nice. You bought it on Omega?"

"How could you possibly know-" Liara cut her off with a look.

"It's my job to know. I am the Shadow Broker." She threw the jacket to the sofa. "Now sit."

This was not the shy and retiring Liara she had known. Part of Shepard wondered where exactly she had picked up the new moves while the other half was busy panting as Liara stepped up to her and bent low to grip the hem of her shirt.

"I've never seen trousers like these," she said. "They are remarkably tight."

Shepard struggled to find actual words as Liara pulled her shirt over her head.

"Well now." Liara stepped back, examining Shepard's body. "Everything's just about where I remember it being."

Shepard finally found something to say. "Are you sure?"

"Well." She threw the shirt away and reached up to undo the straps of her own dress. "I might have to conduct further experiments."

"There's the Doctor T'soni I know and-" Liara dropped the dress and Shepard shut up immediately. She would have expected regular underwear. She could have handled lingerie. But beneath the dress Liara was wearing nothing but her high heeled shoes. "I, buh, muh."

Liara didn't show even a hint of embarrassment. "I thought this might save some time."

Shepard nodded, her mouth hanging open as Liara reached down to her belt buckle.

Liara spared one final moment to smile at her. "Now that's the reaction I waited two years to see."

/|\

It was nearly a full twelve hours later when Shepard finally woke up. She hadn't slept so soundly since she was brought back. Of course they hadn't spent the whole time asleep, but she still felt more rested and relaxed than she had felt in a long time. She rolled over to find Liara's side of the bed empty.

She sat, the rush of panic dissipating when she saw Liara sitting on the sofa, scrolling through a datapad. She looked up with a smile as Shepard relaxed back onto the pillow.

"I didn't want to wake you," she said, setting the pad down. She was wearing Shepard's leather jacket, but apparently nothing else. "I hope you don't mind," she said, tugging the lapel. "I needed something to wear."

"It is totally fine." Shepard sat properly, wrapping herself in the sheet. "Totally fine by me."

"So are we okay?"

Shepard nodded. "We are more than okay. Especially if you keep wearing that jacket."

"I wasn't sure, after what just-"

"There was nothing wrong with what just happened," Shepard said quickly. "I guess you had some tension to get rid of."

Liara nodded. "Definitely. But I wasn't just talking about that. The way I acted, what I said to you…"

Shepard shook her head. "You were under surveillance constantly. That would be bound to drive anyone a little crazy."

"I had to keep up the act. I had to be cold. I had to be an information broker."

"You don't have to be that person anymore Liara. At least not with me."

"Thank you Shepard. But will you do something for me?"

"Anything."

"Promise to do the same. You don't have to be the Commander in here Maia."

Shepard smiled. "Thank you Liara."

Liara stood and walked over, leaning down to kiss her before climbing back under the sheets. The jacket was cold against Shepard's skin, but quickly warmed up as Liara rested against her.

"There's something you're avoiding," she said.

"I suppose." Liara looked up. "But you're avoiding it too."

"Then we both know what it is."

"I think so."

"Do we need to say it?"

Liara shifted uncomfortably. "I didn't know if you still, you know."

"Well I didn't know if you still."

"If we keep avoiding this it could end very badly." Liara sat up properly and looked her in the eye. "I love you Maia Shepard."

"I love you Liara T'soni."

"Good." Liara settled back down against her chest. "I don't think this would work any other way."

/|\

She left a few hours later, dressed in her white dress again. It made Shepard smile to think of her walking through the ship with no one any the wiser about what was beneath it. Of course it made her smile more to remember the shower they had taken before she put the dress on. And the mess they had made of the desk right after the dress was on. And the second shower to clean up _that_. But mostly it was the thought of Liara T'soni of all people going commando.

At the airlock she stopped and kissed Shepard gently on the lips. "Thank you Maia. For the drinks and… everything."

Shepard kissed her right back. "We'll be back soon."

"Any thoughts on your next location?"

"Just before we left Cerberus Miranda received a notification about a project of theirs that supposedly went offline. If we can dig up some dirt on them then it might help me come back to the Alliance. I'm sure Hackett and Anderson would back me."

"You sure you want to go back?"

"Well I'd like to take the ship and go off and be a pirate on the Terminus but I'd need a Pirate Queen to come with me. Kind of traditional that way."

Liara smiled. "I made my choice Shepard, and I think it's the right choice. If I can be the Shadow Broker, if I can make this organisation better. That's a noble purpose."

"Then it's decided. I'm going back to the Alliance, you're going to be my shadowy informant, and we're going to save the galaxy together."

"I like the sound of that." Liara nodded to Joker, who was making very little effort to hide his eavesdropping. "I'll see you again soon." She brushed Shepard's cheek and smiled. "No more waiting around."

The End

**AN:-** That uh, that got a little more heated than I meant it to.

I brought back the Lara Croft biker outfit from Samara's loyalty mission. I kind of imagine the jacket to look like the male Commander Shepard's leather jacket casual outfit from ME3.

I did a lot of moving around and adding to the dialogue to really fit in with the way that I've written the story so far. But nothing much else to say about this one. I hope you enjoyed it and thought it was an appropriate ending for this fun little DLC.

Please read and review. Overlord next!


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